Florida Makes Exciting DJ Lagway Announcement on Tuesday
With the calendar having turned to July over a week ago, the 2025 college football season is quickly approaching. The Florida Gators are less than two months away from their opening matchup of the year against the LIU Sharks, but before that, they will head to the 2025 SEC Football Media Days in Atlanta, Georgia.
Advertisement
The event is scheduled to take place July 14-17, with head coach Billy Napier and Florida speaking on July 15. On Tuesday, the Gators announced the three players who will be representing the team in Atlanta, as a pair of veterans and a budding star will head to the Peach State.
Defensive lineman Caleb Banks and center Jake Slaughter, both of whom are redshirt seniors, will attend for Florida, along with phenom sophomore quarterback DJ Lagway.
Florida Gators quarterback DJ Lagway (2).Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images
Lagway is heading into his second season at UF in 2025. The dual-threat quarterback from Willis, Texas, was a five-star recruit and the No. 1 signal caller in his class coming out of high school, per 247Sports. He played in all 13 games as a freshman last year, making seven starts for the injured Graham Mertz.
Advertisement
In Mertz's absence, Lagway shined, going 6-1 as a starter, including a four-game winning streak to end the season. The 6-foot-3 quarterback threw for 1,915 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2024, leading to a selection on the Football Writers Association of America Freshman All-American Team.
Banks, who is going into his fifth year in Gainesville, amassed 21 total tackles last year to go along with seven tackles-for-loss and 4.5 sacks. He also forced two fumbles and recovered another.
Slaughter, who is the leader on Florida's offensive line at the center position, had one of the best seasons at his position in the country in 2024. As a team captain, Slaughter was an AP All-American First-Team selection, becoming just the third center in program history to earn the honor.
With the leaders on offense and defense joining Napier on the podium at SEC Media Days next week, it will be interesting to see what they have to say about the upcoming season for the team as a whole and Lagway's sophomore campaign.
Related: Florida Given High Praise in College Football Expert's Preseason Poll
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 8, 2025, where it first appeared.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
31 minutes ago
- Yahoo
2025-26 Fantasy Hockey Rankings: Oilers' star duo lead this draft season
The Florida Panthers are two-time Stanley Cup champions after winning their consecutive championship. The question now is, will you follow in the Cats' footsteps in your fantasy hockey leagues?It's only August, but fantasy hockey is already open over in these parts, so you can get started on your prep. Once again, generational talent Connor McDavid leads Scott Pianowski's draft rankings for the 2025-26 season, and he's joined by his frequent linemate, Leon Draisaitl at No. 2 overall. Cale Makar leads the pack at defenseman in the first round, while Connor Hellebuyck is the topper at goaltender. See how the rest of Scott's rankings shake out below, and bookmark/save/star this page as he'll be updating them regularly: Who are you most looking forward to draft in fantasy hockey this season?
Miami Herald
an hour ago
- Miami Herald
Injuries derailed their 2024 season. Can they help the Miami Hurricanes in 2025?
Damari Brown and Ryan Rodriguez were poised for big roles with the Miami Hurricanes last season. Both impressed during spring practices and fall camp to the point that they cracked the starting lineup for Miami's season opener against the Florida Gators, Brown at cornerback and Rodriguez at left guard. Isaiah Taylor, meanwhile, was hoping to carve out a role in the secondary behind starters Mishael Powell and Jaden Harris after transferring in from Arizona. But before they knew it, their seasons were derailed. Brown injured his foot covering a deep ball in the Gators game. Rodriguez broke his leg against UF. And Taylor ultimately needed a pair of shoulder surgeries for injuries sustained before the season began. It's a year later now, and all three are fully healthy and once again fully in control of their path to helping a Hurricanes team trying to improve on a 2024 season in which they went 10-3 but missed out on both the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship Game and the 12-team College Football Playoff. They know roles aren't guaranteed and there's competition for playing time as Miami increased its talent and depth across the roster through the transfer portal and recruiting, but Brown, Rodriguez and Taylor are doing what they can to remain in the grand scheme of Miami's plans. 'I'm excited,' Rodriguez said, 'to get the chance to prove myself again.' Rodriguez, a redshirt senior entering his final year of college football, that this is his final chance to make a statement. He has only played in eight games during his Hurricanes career, missing all of 2022 due to injury and only getting on the field for the Florida game last season before the leg injury derailed his opportunity to show he can be a full-time starter. 'Last year, I finally made a little name for myself, and I'm not satisfied with that,' Rodriguez said. 'Obviously there was an obstacle that I had to overcome. I got injured; fixed it, recovered, rehabbed, and now I feel like I'm better than I was last year. I got smarter over that time. That's something that I really feel like I needed to focus on.' With Rodriguez sidelined last season, Matt McCoy entrenched himself as the team's starting left guard and played steady all season despite dealing with a torn labrum in his right shoulder all season. Rodriguez has been taking reps at both guard spots and center during practices to give the Hurricanes an option off the bench. 'I know what to do at all three spots,' Rodriguez said. 'Whatever [offensive line] coach [Alex Mirabal] tells me to do, I just go out there and do it. That's that's really it. I don't ask too much.' Brown, like Rodriguez, was poised for a big role last season. He started opposite Daryl Porter Jr. at outside corner in the season opener against the Gators before sustaining a foot injury early in that game covering a deep ball. Brown missed the next 10 games before making a brief appearance in Miami's regular-season finale against Syracuse. 'It was a big, unexpected injury,' Brown said. While he was sidelined, Brown took onus upon himself to become a 'another voice to the guys out there.' He used his time rehabbing to see the game 'through a different lens' and act essentially as a player coach during practices. Now that he's back, his goal is to make an impact in a revamped secondary that was one of the Hurricanes' biggest weaknesses a year ago. Depth was thin by the end of the season, and the group's performance handicapped what could have been a stellar season. Miami added six new defensive backs via the transfer portal, including four cornerbacks in Xavier Lucas, Keionte Scott, Ethan O'Connor and Charles Brantley. That quartet plus Brown and freshman All-American OJ Frederique Jr. gives the Hurricanes a much-improved two-deep depth chart at cornerback. 'Things happened for the better,' Brown said. '... Just don't look back.' As for Taylor, he's still waiting to get on the field for the first time with Miami. He transferred to UM last season from Arizona with the hopes of being part of the Hurricanes' safety rotation and make an impact on special teams. That opportunity never came because of shoulder injuries that ultimately required a pair of surgeries. 'It got me missing the game a lot more than I really thought I was going to be,' Taylor, entering his redshirt senior season and the son of defensive line coach Jason Taylor, said of the injuries. What his role will be for Miami is still to be determined. Transfers Zechariah Poyser and Jakobe Thomas are projected to be Miami's starting safeties. From there, Taylor will compete with returnees Markeith Williams and Dylan Day plus true freshmen Amari Wallace and Bryce Fitzgerald for playing time. 'We do have a real talented group and a lot of experience as well,' Taylor said. 'For me, wherever coach wants me to play, I'll play. I'm very versatile where I need to be, and I'll take advantage of any opportunity I get.'
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
2025 college football betting guide: Everything you need to know to place your bets
We're only a few weeks away from a terrific Week 1 showdown between No. 2 Ohio State (-2.5, 48.5 at BetMGM) and No. 1 Texas to help kick off the 2025-26 college football season. Before Arch Manning takes his first snaps as a starter, though, there are plenty of futures wagers to examine and season previews to read. Who is a value bet to win the Heisman Trophy? Can Kent State clear its over/under of 1.5? Which teams are good value bets to win the College Football Playoff? Our experts have in-depth conference previews, along with betting tips for beginners and some picks they like before the season begins. Here's everything you need to know to help with your college football betting this season. 13 tips for bettors before the season No matter if you're a beginning bettor and don't know a money line from a teaser, or you're a seasoned bettor looking to improve, Matt Russell gives some helpful tips for all levels of college football bettors. Biggest College Football Playoff wagers One bettor at BetMGM wagered $615,000 on three College Football Playoff bets and would win $1.5 million if the Texas Longhorns win the title. We're tracking all of the biggest CFP wagers at sportsbooks. One bet I like for (almost) every week this season As we prepare for the season, the Game of the Year market provides another layer of information as to how the betting market rates each of college football's most prominent teams. Matt Russell provides one bet he likes for Weeks 2-14 of the college football season. Four games to bet now If you can spot the right angles early, Game of the Year lines offer exceptional value because you're not just betting on a game, you're betting on how the season unfolds. Here are four games Corbie Craig thinks have value now. 2025 Heisman Trophy odds: Four value bets Corbie Craig reviews data from the last 20 years to identify which players usually win the Heisman and then gives four players he thinks offer some value in the preseason. A sharp handicapper gives three CFB win totals to bet now Those who can't do, teach — or in this case, interview. I spoke with Paul Stone, a terrific college football handicapper, about three over/unders he likes this season. Look away, Stanford Cardinal fans. Conference previews Our handicappers preview all the major college football conferences, including projections for every team, Heisman picks, favorite wagers to make right now and more. 2025 SEC betting preview 2025 ACC betting preview Easy ways to find odds for your favorite team It should be simple to find basic odds for your favorite college football team — at least we think it should be. We're here to make it easy to find the odds for your team in a variety of different markets. Heisman Trophy odds Over/unders for every team Odds for every team make the College Football Playoff
