Florida quarterback Graham Mertz will miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL suffered in UF's 23-17 overtime loss to Tennessee and will undergo surgery next week, coach Billy Napier announced Monday. The injury ends Mertz's college eligibility with the Gators (3-3) and kicks off the DJ Lagway era in Gainesville.
Mertz suffered the injury during the third quarter of the overtime loss and was unable to return. The injury appeared to be non-contact as he threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to take a 10-0 lead. After being evaluated in the locker room, Mertz returned to the sideline on crutches.
In his absence, the true freshman Lagway entered the game and threw an interception on his first attempt. The Gators were ultimately outscored 23-7 after Mertz's injury and failed to score in overtime after kicker Trey Smack missed a 47-yard field goal attempt.
After struggling through a four-year career at Wisconsin, Mertz reached new heights under Napier at Florida. The Kansas native completed 74% of his passes for 3,694 yards, 26 touchdowns and only five interceptions in 16 games with the Gators. He missed games both seasons with injuries. The Gators went 7-9 in his starts.
With Mertz sidelined, Lagway takes over as the full-time starting quarterback. The Willis, Texas, native was the No. 1 quarterback and No. 3 overall player in the Top247 rankings and won Mr. Texas Football from Dave Campbell's Texas Football as the top high school player in the state. The freshman threw for 456 yards and three touchdowns in his first career start against FCS Samford. Against FBS competition, Lagway has thrown two touchdowns and three interceptions.
Lagway takes over as Florida prepares to embark on one of the toughest stretches in the history of college football. After the bye week on Oct. 26, the Gators play No. 5 Georgia, No. 1 Texas, No. 8 LSU and No. 18 Ole Miss in successive weeks. They close the year with a road trip to rival Florida State.
