GAINESVILLE – DJ Lagway stepped onto Florida’s campus with the most hype of a Gators freshman quarterback since Tim Tebow in 2006.
However, their sophomore seasons have followed very different trajectories: Tebow won the Heisman Trophy, while Lagway has thrown more interceptions than touchdowns.
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Tebow, who is back in Gainesville for SEC Nation for the Gators vs. No. 7 Texas, spoke about Lagway’s struggles this season and how he could improve.
“There’s a lot of weight when you are the quarterback here. It’s easy to hear the noise from the outside,” Tebow said Friday afternoon. “I think our best times here is when we were playing free and fast and remembering our love of the school and the fans.”
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Tebow said he believes the Gators need to play with more confidence and momentum offensively. Not just Lagway. Everyone.
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“You got to carry that momentum from drive to drive. It feels like they’ve been behind the eight ball most of the year,” Tebow said. “When he’s played his best, it’s because we’ve been able to watch him throw a good deep ball and play with aggressiveness and confidence.”
Tebow thinks Lagway needs to possess a confidence that verges on arrogance. Every top athlete Tebow said he played against held that.
Urban Meyer knew to call plays that got Tebow energized and mad, the QB said. He hopes coach Billy Napier will call plays that do the same for Lagway.
“I loved to hit a linebacker straight up, and that got me going. What is that for DJ?” Tebow said. “You got to know your players and find a way to get them going, so they can believe and have that passion.”
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In his eyes, Napier needs to call more play-action that allowed Lagway to throw deep. That’s his biggest strength. Too often, Tebow said, Florida has found itself at 3rd-and-long instead of 2nd-and-medium or 3rd-and-short. 3rd-and-longs can spell doom especially vs. the No. 7 Longhorns, which have the 7th-best third down defense in the country.
“Texas has a lot of unique blitzes on 3rd-and-long, so that’s just not a recipe for success,” Tebow said.
Fellow SEC Network analyst Roman Harper said something appears “off” with the Gators offense. He attributed that to Lagway’s lack of an offseason.
“Last year, it was play action, and the ball is going downfield,” Harper said. “This year, the guy is about to get open, and there’s pressure in the QB’s face, so he’s out of the pocket. His eyes can’t go downfield, so he has to check down or throw it away.”
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For Harper, the change needs to come in the run game. Jadan Baugh was expected to help carry the load, yet he’s rushed for just 289 yards. Harper blames the offensive line for the struggles.
“The offensive line has missed a lot of blocks. I don’t know exactly what it is, but Jadan Baugh is too talented to not get going,” Harper said. “When he’s not having guys miss in the backfield, he’s not getting going.”
Harper and Tebow believe if Napier and Co. used the open week to reinvent the offense, the Longhorns are beatable. UF’s defense shined vs. LSU and Miami, and Arch Manning struggled in his lone road start at Ohio State.
“The defense has put Florida in a position to win. I also think Texas has a lot of talent, and Arch is improving every single week, so it’ll be a really good test.”
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What time is Texas vs Florida?
Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. on ESPN.
Noah Ram covers Florida Gators athletics for The Gainesville Sun, GatorSports.com and the USA TODAY Network. Contact him at nram@gannett.com. Follow him on X @Noah_ram1.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Tim Tebow offers advice to struggling UF QB DJ Lagway
