"[He] made some plays with his feet, too,'' Napier said. "That gets overlooked. The read element in the run game, and then there are a few where they covered, and he scrambled and was able to make some plays. He's only going to get better.
"The work that he does between Sunday to Saturday contributes to what you see out there."
Everyone saw Florida steamroll Kentucky in front of a 10th consecutive sellout at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, beating the Wildcats 48-20 in Lagway's first Southeastern Conference start — and second career start.
A week after the Gators suffered a disheartening overtime loss at Tennessee and lost starting quarterback Graham Mertz to a season-ending knee injury, a pair of true freshmen came to the rescue: Lagway and tailback Jadan Baugh, the first time in program history the Gators started a true freshman quarterback and running back in the same game.
"They stepped up in a major way,'' Napier said. "Both were elite players coming out of high school."
Defensive back Trikweze Bridges reacts to his interception, one of three in the game for the Gators. (Photo: Jay Metz/UAA Communications)
Lagway finished 7 of 14 for 259 yards and added 46 yards rushing, while Baugh rushed for 106 yards and five touchdowns. Baugh's five rushing scores tied the program record that Tim Tebow and Trey Burton shared and sparked consistent blasts of Orange & Blue fireworks into the night sky above the south end zone.
Lagway and Baugh headlined Florida's first victory over the Wildcats since 2020, snapping a three-game losing streak in the series UF once dominated. But they had ample support as the Gators piled their most points against an FBS opponent in Napier's three seasons.
The defense held Kentucky (3-4, 1-4) to 309 yards of total offense, 4 of 13 on third down and 1 of 5 on fourth down. Meanwhile, the Gators (4-3, 2-2) turned three interceptions into 14 points in their most promising victory of the season.
"The thing I'm most proud of would be the resiliency of that team," Napier said. "This is a resilient group. Been through quite a bit throughout the season."
In a season that started with the Gators suffering a black eye in a lopsided loss to Miami at The Swamp — and created questions about Napier's future — the Gators improved to 3-0 in what many fans and media called "must-win" contests. They won at Mississippi State, coming off a bad home loss to Texas A&M that dropped them to 1-2, and then beat UCF at home following a bye week. That victory quieted some of the chatter, but last week's loss at Tennessee fired up the critics again.
Lagway did his part to help out his coach, leading the Gators on a 10-play, 63-yard drive on Florida's first possession Saturday night. In a preview of what was to come, Lagway scampered 13 yards on UF's first play of the game, and then after Baugh's 5-yard run, Lagway connected with Eugene Wilson III for a 40-yard pass, the first of his seven completions that averaged 37 yards per connection. Florida finished with 13 explosive plays (10 yards or more), with Lagway directly involved in eight. He added a 22-yard run and hit receiver Elijhah Badger for gains of 50, 58 and 40 yards, and receiver Chimere Dike for 23- and 44-yard passes.
Running back Jadan Baugh spent much of Saturday night camped in the end zone, scoring five rushing touchdowns. (Photo: Maddie Washburn/UAA Communications)
"DJ, he still has a lot to learn, but I think you guys can see he's got a lot of potential," Badger said. "DJ made his throws tonight."
As for Baugh, he started in place of the injured Montrell Johnson Jr. and pounded the Wildcats time and time in the red zone. Baugh scored on a 7-yard run in the second quarter to put the Gators up 13-6 and added a 10-yard touchdown to cap a 4-play, 98-yard drive following a fourth-and-1 stop for the Gators defense with Kentucky at the UF's 2. Moments later, after a Devin Moore 52-yard interception return interception return, Baugh scored on a 1-yard run. He added a pair of 1-yard touchdowns in the second half, often the beneficiary of long Lagway passes to move the Gators deep into Kentucky territory.
Had Baugh, who is from Atlanta, ever scored five touchdowns in a game?
"Yeah, I had more in high school,'' he said. "Really eight, but they called one back, so seven."
Still, he introduced himself to Gators fans in a big way as Florida won for the sixth consecutive time on homecoming. A critical sequence happened in the second quarter after Lagway's only major blemish. After Baugh's 7-yard run snapped a 6-6 tie, Florida's Trikweze Bridges intercepted Kentucky quarterback Brock Vandagriff to give the Gators possession at its 46. Two plays later, Lagway threw an interception that Wildcats strong safety Kristian Story returned 63 yards to Florida's 11. But on fourth-and-goal from the 2, Florida's defense stopped running back Demi Sumo-Karngbaye for no gain. Baugh reeled off a 27-yard run, and on the next play, Lagway hit Badger for 58. Then Baugh ran for 3 yards before his 10-yard touchdown, which firmly put momentum in Florida's hands for good.
"We just knew that Kentucky likes to hold the ball a lot,'' Bridges said. "The biggest thing was just to get the ball back so the offense could put up points. We were able to do that."
Perhaps no moment summed up the feel-good vibes of Saturday night's win than sophomore cornerback Cormani McClain's 29-yard interception return for a touchdown that served as the night's final firework.
McClain committed to Florida on the recruiting trail but eventually signed with Colorado. After one season in Deion Sanders' program, the Gators offered McClain a second opportunity to get his career on track. He made his UF debut Saturday after an apparent shoulder injury forced Jason Marshall Jr. to exit.
When McClain scored, dozens of Gators raced to the end zone to join the celebration, drawing a flood of penalty flags.
No one seemed to mind. The Gators were due for a breakout performance as they prepared to head into their schedule's most harrowing stretch.
"I was on the field, for sure, and I'm offense,'' Badger said. "It felt good. The confidence around him and everybody else around the team — that brings him up and makes them do stuff like that. He didn't know when his moment was going to come, and his moment came."
The Gators had a moment, too, one they have needed all season.
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Friday, November 21
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