Just last weekend, the Florida Gators did what not many people believed they could by defeating the then-No. 9 Texas Longhorns (and saving head coach Billy Napier's job for at least one more week).
Now, the Gators have to face the No. 5 Texas A&M Aggies on the road, in what could be a make-or-break game for Napier's tenure in Gainesville. However, Florida quarterback DJ Lagway could hold the key to his team upsetting yet another top-10 team.
DJ Lagway and the 3rd down curse
So far this season, Lagway and the Gator offense have been far from perfect when it comes to late down efficiency (converting on third or fourth down). Currently, Florida is tied for 122nd in all of FBS for its third and fourth-down success rate.
To put it into a better context, when the Gators lost to the LSU Tigers in September, Lagway threw four interceptions. Every single one of them was on a third-down attempt.
On those critical plays, Lagway has to be perfect this Saturday, or the Texas A&M defense will eat his offensive unit alive.
The Aggies' defense ranks seventh in the country at stopping opponents on their third and fourth down attempts. Simply put, Lagway is David and the Texas A&M defense is Goliath.
Even when Florida took down the Horns last Saturday, the Gators had to punt the ball away on five occasions, Lagway unable to complete passes far enough downfield to convert on lengthy third-down plays.
Unranked Florida and No. 5 Texas A&M are scheduled to play at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday, Oct. 11, in the Aggies' home stadium. Kyle Field, which is one of the largest and loudest stadiums in all of college football, will make Lagway's job even harder.
Texas A&M ranks eighth in the nation for the loudest ever decibel recording at 126.0 dB. With a capacity of over 100,000 fans, the Aggie crowd is going to do its best to make sure Lagway can't communicate with his teammates or even hear the play calls in the first place.