Billy Napier says freshman QB DJ Lagway is ‘getting better’

Florida freshman quarterback [autotag]DJ Lagway[/autotag] has only been with the program since January, but [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag] is already noticing some development from the former five-star recruit.

“Just overall comfort level with the system,” Napier said of Lagway at his Saturday press conference. “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.'”

Napier pointed to the summer program, which is heavy on the mental side of being a quarterback. Learning a college playbook is a completely different beast from most high schools. Lagway has the physical gifts of a five-star, no doubt, but the mental side of things will separate him from the rest of his peers.

“I think all the things that we do with the quarterback throughout the summer (helps),” he said. “There are two 4D Gator lesson plans each week; they get them on Monday they’ve got to turn them in on Friday. The padding that the quarterback is required to do all throughout the summer. He just jumped into that for the first time, and I think he made tremendous growth. Knowledge of defense.”

Padding, in this context, isn’t the stuff that keeps the players safe. It’s a method of diagramming opponents’ plays, most notably used by Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots.

Lagway is impressing on the field as well. The raw talent has always been there — throwing power, accuracy, etc. But refining mechanics makes things tidy and quick, which is necessary at the highest level of the college game.

“I think he’s improved fundamentally, too. The ball’s coming out more consistently. His feet have been polished up. He’s getting better.”

Napier believes one of the main things holding him back is that he’s working with plenty of players at different points in their development. The second string is full of guys who are either missing something or still learning the system such as Lagway.

“He’s still young,” Napier said. “He’s taken reps with this second group of offensive players, which is a mixture of players. I’ve said many times I think sometimes the quarterback is dependent on the others around them to play well, and then defensively you’re always a little bit ahead in the beginning because it requires you to be very precise on offense and all 11 players to do what they’re supposed to do.

“Overall, I would say that as a whole we need to make improvement in that area. Typically, after three days that’s what we’re talking about. Precision on offense, detail, all 11 players being able to do their job, great communication with the right fundamentals and then when you get a chance to make a play you go execute make the play.”

There are a lot of moving pieces in Florida’s offense right now, but it sounds like Lagway is trending up. The general public will only get glimpses of him over the next few weeks, but he’s expected to be a significant piece of the offense by the end of the season.

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This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Billy Napier says freshman QB DJ Lagway is ‘getting better’