Quick-hitters from Billy Gonzales' Monday presser

Here are some quick-hitters from the Monday press conference of Florida Gators interim head coach Billy Gonzales …

*What did Gonzales think about quarterback coach Ryan O’Hara’s debut as UF’s play-caller in Saturday’s 24-20 loss to No. 5 Georgia? “I thought it was great. I think he did a great job,” Gonzales said. “We were in a situation to win the game. We can surround and say different things, would you have changed things? I thought the flow of the game went well.”

The Georgia game was Florida’s first since firing Billy Napier as coach. He also had been UF’s play caller.

Saturday, O’Hara and offensive coordinator Russ Callaway sat in the coaches booth during the game. Offensive analyst Steve Spurrier Jr. was on the sideline. Among other things, Gonzales said he was pleased with how early O’Hara got the plays to him. That allowed the Gators to be smoother in transition, and clean up the procedural issues of past games.

The Gators finished with 281 yards and 16 first downs, not great numbers. But in a back-and-forth battle, the Gators led halfway through the fourth quarter.

*Gonzales spoke at length about what he’s looking for from quarterback DJ Lagway in Game 2 of this new setup. The Gators (3-5 overall, 2-3 in the SEC) play at Kentucky (3-5, 1-5) on Saturday. Lagway was 15 of 24 for 166 yards and a touchdown against Georgia. He added 24 rushing yards.

“I think the biggest thing for DJ is just to continue to relax,” Gonzales said. “He made some plays. Would we have liked to hit every single pass, yeah. We’ve just got to let him play. Get him in the flow of things. He’s a very talented young man. So, continue to put him in a position. Continue to pair things down, get multiple reps at things. Get him the looks through practice. If there’s an issue, go back, correct it. Don’t just let it go. Correct it right then and there. Let him get the rep, repeat it and fix it and move on to the next play.”

*The season-ending injury to Florida Gators receiver Dallas Wilson on Saturday vs. Georgia was a bitter pill to swallow. Wilson was hurt on UF’s last third-down play before the break and went to the locker room. He came back out in the second half with a boot on his right foot.

Wilson has 12 catches for 174 yards and three touchdowns in four games played. He missed the first four games of the season and most of training camp with a left foot injury

“It’s hard,” Gonzales said. “For a coach, especially the coach that coached him, and recruited him, and had a chance to work with him. Seeing how hard he’s worked. Anytime a player gets injured, as a coach you feel for that player because the majority of the guys played the game. I played the game. I lost time because of injuries.

First thing we did, we jumped on the bus on the way home (from Jacksonville). As we were driving away, I walked down the bus and sat with him for a little bit and just talked to him. Put my arm around him and told him I loved him. It’s a setback but we’ll recover from it and he’ll be fine.”

*Elsewhere on the injury front, Gonzales said he’s optimistic about getting standout freshman receiver Vernell Brown III back for the Kentucky game. Brown (upper body) did not play vs. Georgia. He was injured two weeks earlier against Mississippi State. He leads the Gators in catches (32) and receiving yards (451). “We’ll have practice a little later today and see where he’s at running around,” Gonzales said. “But I’m very hopeful to have him back.”

*Injuries have taken their toll on the receivers room in 2025. Gonzales said that’s just part of the game.

“You’ve always got to have a backup plan as far as being able to make sure guys can play,” he noted. “That’s development. Hopefully we’ve done a good job of developing the players behind them to put them in a position. We talked about this before. Competitive excellence in my opinion is when your number is called you’re ready to make the play.”

*Since Napier was fired as UF coach on Oct. 19, the Gators have not had a single recruit de-commit from the program. UF currently has the No. 13 class in the country per Rivals and 19 pledges.

“We’re still actively recruiting our players,” Gonzales said. “It’s no different than anything else. We’re still communicating on a daily basis, sending texts, sending emails, getting a chance to talk to them on the phone. They’re still Florida Gators. We’re still Florida Gators coaches and we’re still recruiting our student-athletes to come to this university. It’s a great opportunity. This is the University of Florida. We want to go out and get these players to come here. And they understand that part. This is a special place.’

The last word from Billy Gonzales

“Moral victories are not what we’re chasing here. We’re chasing wins, we’re chasing victories. So we’ve got to get back to work this week and get ready to rock and roll.”