Gators quarterback DJ Lagway suffered a serious leg injury in Saturday's loss to Georgia, Florida's fourth consecutive loss in the annual rivalry game in Jacksonville.
A Season of Adversity Takes Another Turn in Loss to Georgia
Sunday, November 3, 2024 | Football, Scott Carter
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By: Scott Carter, Senior Writer
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The way the day was going, you wondered if this was finally the Gators' year against Georgia.
The weather was Sunshine State on a postcard. The drive to EverBank Stadium was a Sunday stroll down University Avenue. And no one was passed out in your parking spot by noon.
"We showed up, and we believed we could beat that team,'' Florida head coach Billy Napier said.
Once the annual Florida-Georgia game kicked off, the Gators looked like they belonged on the field with the No. 2-ranked Bulldogs, which had not happened in recent years. Georgia had outscored Florida by 72 points in three consecutive wins in the series by 20-plus points.
But on Saturday, in one of this century's more odd Florida-Georgia games, the recent past seemed of little consequence. Bulldogs quarterback Carson Beck was playing more like Ray Goff. Gators freshman DJ Lagway threw a deep touchdown pass that would make Steve Spurrier smile, and the Gators led at halftime for the first time against Georgia since 2020.
Yes, there is another "but" coming. Here you go: But the game changed dramatically on a run by Lagway late in the second quarter. You might have to go back 15 years to find a single play that turned the stomachs of Florida fans as much. That was the night in 2009 when Kentucky's Taylor Wyndham delivered a vicious hit on Tim Tebow that knocked Tebow out and left him sprawled on the turf.
Lagway never lost consciousness Saturday, but when his teammates came onto the field to console the true freshman quarterback as he was carted off, everyone in the crowd of more than 76,000 fans understood the impact.
The most promising piece of Florida's upset bid — and more significantly, the Gators' most prized possession — was finished for the game, perhaps much longer after injuring his left hamstring on an otherwise uneventful 3-yard run.
"It's obviously really tough,'' receiver Chimere Dike said. "We felt like we had momentum."
The twisted turn led to a 34-20 loss for the Gators and their first four-game losing streak to the Bulldogs in more than 40 years. In the annals of "what-if" Florida-Georgia games, the 2024 edition has a safe place on the list.
Despite being heavy underdogs, the Gators took a 7-3 lead early in the second quarter when Lagway hit Aidan Mizell for a 43-yard touchdown pass. The strike came on the first play after Devin Moore picked off one of Beck's interceptions. Florida extended its lead to 10-3 on Trey Smack's 32-yard field goal on the Gators' next possession, a result of an interception by UF defensive back Aaron Gates.
The Gators had the look of a believer.
"We weren't surprised by what we did,'' said defensive back Trikweze Bridges. "We know who we are."
But everything changed on the Gators' next drive when Lagway fell awkwardly to the ground and immediately clutched the back of his left leg. Florida's medical staff rushed to the scene, and soon, Napier bent over to check on Lagway.
The early diagnosis is a soft-tissue injury, which Napier described on television as "significant" as he entered the locker room. He said Lagway would undergo an MRI on Sunday. The Gators travel to face No. 5 Texas next week.
Meanwhile, with Lagway out and Florida's sideline stunned, the Gators turned to walk-on Aidan Warner, who played at Winter Park (Fla.) High, and a year ago, was at Yale. The Gators struggled mightily on offense following Lagway's departure, but thanks to a bend-don't-break defensive performance, Florida pulled even at 20-20 on a 15-yard scoring run by Ja'Kobi Jackson with 7:29 left in the game.
Warner finished 7 of 22 for 66 yards and an interception. After the Bulldogs regained the lead on Beck's 10-yard touchdown pass to Dominic Lovett, Warner made his biggest mistake by throwing an interception deep in Florida's territory. Georgia's Dwight Phillips Jr. scored on a 4-yard run with 3:03 remaining to seal Georgia's 53rd win in its last 56 games.
Napier passed on any single play – or Lagway's injury – as the reason Florida lost.
Transfer walk-on quarterback Aidan Warner was thrust into the spotlight on Saturday due to an injury to starter DJ Lagway. (Photo: Lorenzo Vasquez/UAA Communications)
"We probably played 180 plays out there today, and there were multiple opportunities for us to get it done,'' he said. "I'm extremely proud of our team. I think throughout this entire year the character of this group has showed up. I think it's a tough group.
"I'm proud of the way think executed in the game today, the effort in which they played, and the pride in which they took in representing Florida and competing."
Napier is right.
The Gators showed up Saturday ready to play. They held their own against the nation's No. 2-ranked team when they could have easily folded at the sight of Lagway being carted off the field.
Say what you want about this Florida team. The Gators are .500 and residing in the land of mediocrity in the standings. They won't be favored again this season except perhaps in the regular-season finale at Florida State. Their coach is under fire and 15-18 in his third season.
Still, they have not quit. They say they won't, and based on what they did on Saturday, there's no reason not to believe them.
"There's no moral victories," Dike said. "We're at the University of Florida. We're not saying that, but I think this team is taking steps in the right direction. That's something that we can kind of be proud of."
