Florida Gators football DJ Lagway Heisman Trophy The Athletic draft

Every five-star quarterback is signed with the pressure of becoming a Heisman Trophy candidate as quickly as possible. Some fizzle out, others become multi-year starters at respectable programs and a few shine above the rest to reach true greatness.

DJ Lagway has a chance to be one of the great ones at Florida, but is he already a Heisman candidate?

It depends on who you ask. Most major sportsbooks have him as a top-10 contender for the award before even taking a snap. Arch Manning (Texas), Garrett Nussmeier (LSU) and Cade Klubnik (Clemson) are the so-called favorites, but there isn’t a unanimous preseason pick like in prior years.

Anthony Richardson found himself in a similar spot a few years ago, albeit during the Billy Napier transitional stage. Ultimately, Lagway’s Heisman candidacy will be determined on the field. If he plays well, Florida will win and he’ll be in contention. A few ugly games can knock you right out of the conversation, but a head-to-head win against one of the names above could skyrocket his Heisman stock.

The Athletic’s annual Heisman draft

The Athletic recently held a Heisman fantasy draft, where each of the top 10 wins points. The first place gets 10, the second gets nine and so forth. Lagway fell all the way to the 11th pick, finally being picked up by senior writer David Ubben. It’s a shot in the dark to pick Lagway for Heisman, in a way, but he’s the kind of player that can’t be counted out, especially after what he did while healthy last year.

“Apparently I’m building my team solely out of dual-threat quarterbacks with a ton of potential amid some skepticism,” said Ubben after taking South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers in the first round.

“Lagway took over the starting job as a five-star true freshman last year and was a huge reason why Florida rallied late in the season, notching a pair of…

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Publish date : 2025-08-17 11:01:00

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