DJ Lagway has no choice but to be elite if Florida wants to compete

As the Florida Gators get ready to embark on their 2025 campaign, predictions for the Gators have ranged from going 10-2 and making the playoffs to going 6-6 and getting Billy Napier fired.

At the center of it all will be DJ Lagway, who has no choice but to be elite if Florida is going to survive in 2025.

DJ Lagway left off All-SEC list

Phil Steele released his preseason All-SEC team, and DJ Lagway was not included on it. Mind you, he went four deep on QBs and included Garrett Nussmeier, Arch Manning, LaNorris Sellers, and John Mateer.

In fact, as a whole, Florida had no one on offense selected for the first team, just two players selected for the second team (Jake Slaughter and Austin Barber), and Eugene Wilson made it on the third team.

The defense did get Caleb Banks and Tyreak Sapp on the list, with Banks making the first team, but the overall picture painted is that Florida has a roster that is good but not elite.

This brings us back to Lagway and the importance he brings to the Gators in 2025.

If Lagway winds up being the 5th or 6th best QB in the SEC, Florida is dead in the water. Given Florida's schedule, the Gators just aren't elite enough at other positions to navigate their way to the playoffs if Lagway is a middle-of-the-road QB.

If Lagway ends up being a top-three QB in the SEC, then the sky is the limit for Florida. Look no further than South Carolina and the power of a top-tier QB. The Gamecocks weren't considered a talented roster heading into 2024, but came within a bad call against LSU from making the playoffs.

We even saw this effect last year with Florida. Graham Mertz was who he was and wasn't a bad QB, but it was evident from Lagway's first start against Samford that there was a difference between the two.

But Lagway himself still has room to grow. As much as he provided a spark during Florida's four-game winning streak to close out 2024, there were still moments where he looked like a freshman.

The Gators can get away with that against a 2-10 FSU and a checked-out Tulane squad, but when their gauntlet begins, they are going to need Lagway to look like a five-star.