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Chris Low, ESPN Senior Writer
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Graham Mertz will start at quarterback Saturday for Florida against Texas A&M, but there is a plan in place for freshman DJ Lagway.
Florida coach Billy Napier told ESPN that Mertz would be the first quarterback on the field and that Lagway would play specific possessions each half and certain plays throughout possessions.
“Both players will play. They have a great relationship,” Napier said. “The staff and team have confidence in both players. Both have been impressive this week. It’s a positive for our team as a whole.”
Mertz, a redshirt senior, missed last week’s game with a concussion suffered in the season-opening 41-17 home loss to Miami. Lagway filled in for Mertz and passed for 456 yards and three touchdowns in a 45-7 rout of FCS foe Samford. Lagway broke the school record for single-game passing yards by a freshman, topping Chris Leak’s 268 against Kentucky in 2003.
Napier had said all week that Florida planned to use both Mertz and Lagway and that they will “make us harder to defend.”
The 6-foot-3, 239-pound Lagway was ESPN’s top-rated quarterback prospect in the 2024 signing class. His successful debut as the starter last week, albeit against a lesser foe, only intensified the Florida quarterback debate.
Mertz finished with 91 passing yards, no touchdowns and an interception against Miami, his worst statistical performance since transferring to Florida from Wisconsin. Florida had trouble blocking Miami, and Mertz was sacked three times. Montrell Johnson had a 71-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. Other than that, the Gators managed just 190 yards in total offense.
Mertz had a career year last season for the Gators, with highs in completions (261), passing yards (2,903), touchdowns (20) and completion percentage (72.9). He also threw just three interceptions in 358 passing attempts.
Napier, in his third season, would see the heat ratchet up if the Gators lose another home game this early in the season. They are 6-10 in SEC games on his watch with back-to-back losing seasons. Florida has suffered through three straight losing seasons overall going back to Dan Mullen’s final year in 2021.
Napier said this summer that this was the best team he has had since he arrived at Florida, which faces perhaps the toughest schedule in the country. After the Texas A&M game, Florida travels to Mississippi State and comes back home to face UCF. The Gators then close the season with five of their final seven games against nationally ranked teams — including four top-10 opponents — and three of those contests are away from home.