Walk-On Warner takes the spotlight as Lagway Rehabs

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Billy Napier With this statement he gave fans a glimmer of hope during his press conference on Monday DJ Lagway can return.

“The good news is that we have received positive information about this,” Napier said. “That's the positive.” We believe that injuries are less significant. We believe there is a path to recovery and return.”

Lagway was injured after getting hurt and losing his footing five minutes before halftime against Georgia. The Gators had a 10-3 lead when he left, but Florida's offense lost its footing without Lagway down the stretch and UF lost 34-20.

But while Lagway rehabs and may return in the second quarter from the hamstring injury he suffered Saturday in Jacksonville, there's a reasonable chance Florida will need to bring in another signal-caller as a temporary replacement. “If that happens,”Aidan Warner“ will be on everyone’s lips in Gainesville.

Warner, a Winter Park, Fla., native and redshirt freshman, arrived at Florida as a walk-on in the spring but did not attend spring training. He spent his first college season at Yale and did not see any playing time.

Because Warner did not participate in spring or summer training sessions as the team's other quarterbacks received representatives, he had little opportunity to showcase his talent. Subsequent senior Graham Mertz After suffering a torn ACL on Oct. 12, Warner jumped to second string and impressed Florida coaches over the past three weeks.

“I would say he did some really good drills. I think there are some things that are encouraging,” Napier said.

Lagway's sudden departure on Saturday thrust Warner into the spotlight for the Florida-Georgia game after he had only touched the field in an SEC game once before this year. His first longer playing time was characterized by various ups and downs.

The walk-on went 7 of 22 for 66 yards and an interception on Saturday, thanks largely to constant pressure from Georgia's defense. Warner led the Gators with two scoring drives: one for a field goal late in the first half and one for a touchdown in the fourth quarter. What UF fans may remember most, however, is his costly interception with three minutes left in the game.

Napier stated that he was still happy with Warner's performance against the second-placed team in the country.


“Look, the boy did his job as well as he could. There will be some plays he'd like to have back, but it's a pretty big stage to trot out there in the middle of,” Napier said. “I was impressed by him.”


Before the Georgia game, Warner had seen limited action against Samford and Kentucky – the two games in which he was UF's primary backup. In his first snaps as a Gator, he rushed for a 9-yard touchdown and completed a 10-yard pass against Samford. Nearly a month later, he put up similar statistics against Kentucky, completing one pass for 20 yards.

However, he didn't have much experience in the SEC spotlight before Saturday.

“I came here, got the opportunity, found out my ACL was torn when I got here and had surgery,” Warner told reporters after the Kentucky game. “I mean, it's been a wild ride.” So, it's just a lot of hard work coming into training, building that confidence and realizing I can play here. Once I had that confidence, I hit the ground running.”


Warner's teammates praised him for being able to withstand a jump in competition.


“He excelled, man. He was thrust into the spotlight. I can’t even imagine what was going through that guy’s head,” tight end Hayden Hansen said. “I have great respect for him. He left everything on the field.”


Warner's ability to immediately make an impact in Florida is due in part to his intelligence and calm.


Hansen mentioned that Warner exuded confidence when he arrived on the UF campus, which is not typical of a walk-on. This confidence allows Warner to remain composed even when competing at a level he has never seen before.


Coming from Yale, there is an expectation that Warner's IQ and processing skills as a former Ivy League player could be an asset. Hansen agreed on this point.


“They’re a little different than everyone else. They can do different things,” Hansen said. “They expected different things… He picked up on that playbook pretty quickly.”


Warner's impressive first few months at UF will be tested if Lagway is unable to return in the coming weeks. Florida faces No. 5 Texas this Saturday at Forty Acres before returning home to beat No. 14 LSU and No. 16 Ole Miss in consecutive weeks.


His teammates remain confident that he will continue to exceed his expectations when facing some of the SEC's toughest teams. Unfortunately, he already managed to do that against Georgia.


“He plays fearlessly. He came out of Yale as a true freshman. He didn’t get any playing time there,” Hansen said. “He comes here to the SEC and finds himself in the Florida-Georgia game… I was proud of him.”


At 4-4, Florida's season is on the line in every contest. The Gators need to pick up two wins in the next four weeks to qualify for the bowl, and they'll face that task with a number of different faces in the lineup than expected. Warner's performance will be of utmost importance over the next few weeks, and the rest of Florida's team is preparing to support him.


“We’re going to rally around him this week and go out and compete,” Napier said.