Gators Wire’s annual position preview series begins with the most important position on the field: quarterback.
The Florida Gators have a clear hierarchy under center heading into 2024. Redshirt senior [autotag]Graham Mertz[/autotag] will start for a second-straight season in Gainesville, with former five-star recruit and true freshman [autotag]DJ Lagway[/autotag] hungry for snaps behind him.
Over the offseason, head coach Billy Napier implied that Lagway would be used more than a typical first-year player, and reports are good coming out of fall camp. Some fans are hoping for a Chris Leak-Tim Tebow dynamic, but Mertz is still the man in charge of the position room right now.
Starter: No. 15 Graham Mertz (R-Sr.*)
| YEAR | GP | CMP | ATT | PCT(%) | YDS | TD | INT | RTG |
| 2019* | 2 | 9 | 10 | 90.0 | 73 | 0 | 0 | 151.3 |
| 2020* | 7 | 118 | 193 | 61.1 | 1,238 | 9 | 5 | 125.2 |
| 2021* | 13 | 169 | 284 | 59.5 | 1,958 | 10 | 11 | 121.3 |
| 2022* | 12 | 164 | 286 | 57.3 | 2,136 | 19 | 10 | 135.0 |
| 2023 | 11 | 261 | 358 | 72.9 | 2,903 | 20 | 3 | 157.8 |
| Total | 45 | 721 | 1,131 | 63.7 | 8,308 | 58 | 29 | 137.2 |
* = while playing for Wisconsin
Graham Mertz enters his second year as Florida’s starter with much more confidence than he did in 2023. Mertz’s developed a reputation of inconsistency at Wisconsin, his biggest offense being double-digit interceptions in back-to-back seasons.
Mertz quieted those turnover concerns by completing 73% of his attempts with the Gators and throwing just three interceptions. The goal this year is to cement himself a spot in the draft class, and a repeat performance could do just that.
The biggest question mark in Mertz’s game is the ability to throw the ball deep. Napier rarely called on Mertz to heave the ball beyond 20 yards downfield, and that’s for a reason. Adding a consistent deep ball to his game could elevate Mertz to where he wants to be.
“Graham’s great. He’s phenomenal,” Napier said. “He’s just got a great energy about himself. It affects other people in a positive way. Extremely detailed, a great note taker, great in the unit meetings, great in the position meetings. He’s a pro.”
Backup: No. 2 DJ Lagway (Fr.)
Make no mistake, DJ Lagway is the quarterback of the future in Gainesville, but he’ll have to pay his dues before taking over the starting reigns at Florida.
Freshmen quarterbacks are among the most volatile players in the sport, and easing them into the college level is typically preferred. But Lagway is the kind of former five-star who deserves immediate playing time, and the fans are going to get louder if he doesn’t see the field.
Lagway has a cannon for an arm and scrambling ability, which separates him from Mertz.
Napier has already admitted that the Gators will have packages and plays drawn up for Lagway throughout the season, but the exact split of snaps remains to be seen.
“Just overall comfort level with the system,” Napier said of Lagway after the team’s first scrimmage. “I had a conversation with him the other day coming off after practice one, and you say ‘I know that wasn’t perfect, the (first) practice day is never perfect, but just think about where you’re at now compared to where you were at after spring number one.’”
Reserve: No. 18 Clay Millen (R-Jr.)
| YEAR | GP | CMP | ATT | PCT(%) | YDS | TD | INT | RTG |
| 2021* | 2 | 1 | 2 | 50.0 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 58.4 |
| 2022** | 10 | 169 | 234 | 72.2 | 1,910 | 10 | 6 | 149.8 |
| 2023** | 1 | 15 | 24 | 62.5 | 110 | 0 | 1 | 92.7 |
| Total | 45 | 185 | 260 | 71.2 | 8,308 | 10 | 7 | 143.8 |
*= while at Nevada **= while at Colorado State
[autotag]Clay Millen[/autotag] transferred from Colorado State — he spent his freshman year at Nevada — and joined the Gators during the spring semester. Billy Napier likes to have at least five quarterbacks on his roster and needed a third scholarship player in the position room.
A veteran from a respected program like Colorado State is the right kind of addition for an SEC team looking for depth, but Millen shouldn’t see the field unless it’s a blowout or injuries occur.
Walk-Ons: No. 12 Paul Kessler (Fr.), No. 16 Aidan Warner (R-Fr.) and No. 26 Lawrence Wright IV (Fr.)
[autotag]Paul Kessler[/autotag] joined the team in the spring as a preferred walk-on after one season at Santa Monica College.
[autotag]Aidan Warner[/autotag] redshirted at Yale in 2023 and walked on at Florida in the spring. He played prep ball in the Orlando area at Winter Park High School.
[autotag]Lawrence Wright IV[/autotag] is the final walk-on quarterback in the position room. He joined the Gators over the summer.
None of these three should see the field, but depth is a necessity at this level, especially for practice.
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