Joel Klatt believes teams are nervous to face DJ Lagway, ranks him as top 10 QB

It’s the time of the year for offseason rankings and all manner of lists, like the top 10 quarterbacks in the country. FOX Sports analyst Joel Klatt has Florida quarterback DJ Lagway pegged as one such guy.

Klatt opened up on his selections for the top quarterbacks in the country on The Joel Klatt Show. Lagway was one of his first picks.

“This is a guy that I’ve got to tell you, I think that SEC fans that are not fans of this school are a bit nervous about,” Klatt said. “They’re nervous to face this guy, and rightly so. I think he’s a star. I think you saw that late last year, and that’s DJ Lagway from Florida.”

As a true freshman, DJ Lagway was thrust into action after Graham Mertz suffered a season-ending injury. He had been playing before that, but after the Mertz injury he became the full-time starter.

And he showed what he could do. Lagway threw for 1,915 yards and 12 touchdowns, against nine interceptions. He also ran for 101 yards.

“DJ Lagway is a hell of a player, man,” Klatt said. “I’m telling you, this guy could be an absolute superstar by the end of the year. Florida’s still going to have to deal with that horrific schedule, but when he came in at halftime of that Tennessee game in Neyland and nearly pulled off the upset there… they lost in overtime after he threw a game-tying touchdown in that final minute.”

Klatt said fans of teams like Tennessee are sweating over the prospect of having to face Lagway again. He’s that good.

“I know for a fact, because one of them works on this show, Tennessee fans are like, ‘Oh man, I don’t like the thought of that game at all this year,'” Klatt said. “I get it. DJ Lagway is a hell of a player and you saw that last year, and you can extrapolate out some of that growth and development into a guy that can be really dynamic.”

DJ Lagway played much of the season with a bum hamstring, injuring it against Georgia and forced to protect it much of the rest of the way. And without a quality backup, Florida couldn’t afford to run him much.

So there’s a whole element to Lagway’s game yet to be unlocked. That’s a scary prospect.

“He got hurt early in that Georgia game, then he missed the Texas game the following week,” Klatt pointed out. “He came back, he won the last four games of the year, including LSU, including Ole Miss against Jaxson Dart, first-round draft pick. He’s a five-star guy and he got to play.”

As for the overall summary on DJ Lagway, Klatt was a bit more even-keeled. It might not all be big plays right off the bat.

“It wasn’t all highlights, obviously, so as is the case most of the time with young players interceptions, turnovers, got to clean that up,” Klatt said. “Only completed 60% of his passes but he’s got a huge arm, he’s got legs, he’s got athleticism. I like Lagway. I really do. I think that he’s excellent.”