Florida Gators need transfer QB more than they need DJ Lagway
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If you’ve listened to commentary around Florida’s coaching search, you’ve probably heard this question raised often: Will the next coach be able to retain DJ Lagway?
To which I say: Why does that matter? If Lagway hits the transfer portal, happy trails. If the Gators’ next coach is worth his clipboard, he’ll bring in a transfer quarterback who’s better than what Lagway’s been for Florida this season.
Interim coach Billy Gonzales benched Lagway after he threw three interceptions in a 38-7 loss to Kentucky. Kentucky freshman Cutter Boley outplayed Lagway, who’s thrown 21 interceptions in two seasons. If you’re a second-year starter getting outplayed by a Kentucky freshman, you’re replaceable.
Lagway came to Florida with a lot of fanfare, but he’s not developed the consistency required to flourish. The game’s changed around developing quarterbacks. No more do coaches need to sign a blue-chip prospect, develop him for a couple of seasons and hope he’s ready to thrive by his junior year. The portal offers solutions.
Three of the top-five-rated quarterbacks in the SEC are transfers. Vanderbilt’s Diego Pavia was once a two-star junior college prospect. Lane Kiffin mined Trinidad Chambliss from Division II. Tennessee grabbed Joey Aguilar off the scrap heap in April, and he now leads the SEC in passing yards.
Lagway probably will be starting somewhere next season. It’s OK for Florida if it’s somewhere else, so long as the Gators’ next coach can lure transfer talent. And if he can’t do that, he probably shouldn’t be Florida’s next coach.
Blake Toppmeyer is USA TODAY’s senior national college football columnist. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on X @btoppmeyer.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Florida Gators need transfer QB more than they need DJ Lagway
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