FLORIDA — University of Florida quarterback DJ Lagway is leaving the program and entering the transfer portal, he announced Monday on his Instagram account.
That means the Gators will enter next season with a new starting quarterback and a new head coach.
In his post, Lagway thanked his family, teammates, coaching staff, Florida’s athletic trainers and other members of the university community for their support.
“I am truly grateful for the opportunity to have been part of such an incredible program here at the University of Florida,” Lagway said in his post.
Florida hired Jon Sumrall from Tulane as head coach late last month to replace Billy Napier, who they fired midseason.
Lagway spent two seasons at Florida, the highest profile recruit of Napier’s coaching stint at Florida.
In Lagway’s 24 regular-season games as the Gators’ quarterback, Florida went 12-13 and in 2024 went to the Gasparilla Bowl, where Florida defeated Tulane and he was named MVP. He completed 328 of 529 pass attempts for 4,179 yards, 28 touchdown passes, and he threw 23 interceptions. He also carried the football 122 times for 237 yards and one touchdown.
This past season, the oft-injured Lagway completed 63% of his passes this season for 2,264 yards, with 16 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. He also ran for 136 yards and a score. He missed most of the offseason program while recovering from core-muscle surgery, a sore throwing arm and a strained calf. He also missed time in 2024 with a hamstring injury.
He looked like a potential star as a freshman at Florida, going 6-1 as a starter. But he seemed out of sorts as a sophomore — evidenced by sloppy mechanics and a clear lack of confidence in the pocket.
Lagway also was due to make more than $3 million in 2026 at Florida and made millions already through name, image and likeness deals with Gatorade, Jordan Brand, Mercedes-Benz, Lamborghini Orlando, T-Mobile, Beats by Dre, Chipotle and others.
After Lagway made the announcement, newly hired LSU coach Lane Kiffin retweeted a link to a news story about Lagway announcing his decision. When Florida sought a replacement for Napier, it reportedly showed strong interest in hiring Kiffin before he accepted an offer for the Tigers’ job.
The transfer portal opens Jan. 2.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
