Emmitt Smith receives DJ Lagway, the newest Gators quarterback, with a More Than Gatorade Award in a grand arrival.
“He’s a handsome kid,” commented the older man. “That’s a good face to have.”
They gathered for the first time on Thursday morning at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, bridging the Gators football program’s proud history with a bright future.
Emmitt Smith waited at the end of the tunnel leading from Florida’s locker room, and new Gators quarterback DJ Lagway was about to experience the shock of his young life. Lagway was told he was in town for a picture session after arriving with his parents from Orlando, where he competed in Wednesday’s Under Armour All-America Game.
Smith waited outside as Lagway opened the entrance and walked down the tunnel. He did not own a camera.
Instead, the Pro Football Hall of Fame running back carried the Gatorade National Player of the Year trophy. Smith was the first Florida player to get the title as the nation’s best high school football player at Escambia High in Pensacola 36 years ago. Lagway, a five-star prospect from Willis, Texas, is the newest.
The occasion marked another turning point in Smith and Lagway’s week of outstanding encounters.
Smith finished his playing career at UF in 1989 and became the NFL’s all-time top rusher. Jimmy Johnson, former coach of the Dallas Cowboys, was inducted into the franchise’s Ring of Honor on Sunday. Smith and former colleagues Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin, and others attended the ceremony.
Meanwhile, since signing with the Gators last month, Lagway has won a number of state and national accolades, the most notable of which was presented to him by Smith at 11:40 a.m. on a sunny and cold January day. Smith was not the only one who traveled from Texas to surprise Lagway.
As part of Gatorade’s unique announcement—the first time the sports beverage brand has presented the award to a player on a college campus—50 of Lagway’s friends and family stood quietly in the stands above the entryway. When Smith pointed up to Lagway and handed him the trophy, his grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends stood and cheered.
“It’s truly a dream come true,” Lagway stated about the honor. “This has been a dream of mine since I was a child. I was very startled. I didn’t expect to see Emmitt Smith.
While Thursday’s festivities were Gatorade’s way of paying tribute to Lagway, the day also provided Smith and Lagway with an opportunity to address how Lagway’s life may soon alter. They walked around Florida Field alone for a few minutes Thursday, then had press conferences on Zoom with Houston-area journalists that covered Lagway in high school, including CBS/247 Sports, USA Today, and Sports Illustrated.
Lagway, clearly impressed by Smith’s presence, sat next to him at a table in the little room where Florida’s running backs used to gather in The Swamp’s south end zone. The wall was decorated with photo plaques of the top running backs in school history, which drew Smith’s attention.
The speaker mentioned Ran Carthon’s achievements as general manager of the Tennessee Titans. He cited Emmitt’s former blocking back at Florida, Cedric Smith, as an example of a successful NFL strength coach. He listed others who had gone on to achieve success in business and other ventures.
Smith’s clear advice was to work hard to realize your potential as a player and build talents that would help you later in life.
Smith credits his success at UF to meeting Rich Tuten, the college football and strength coach, during his first summer there. Smith stated that he arrived prepared to play and knew he possessed potential, but the true test lied ahead.
“The expectations were very high,” Smith explained. “Rich Tuten, he took a personal liking to me and wanted to make sure I was ready.”
Smith soon discovered he had gears he had no idea existed. “I was afraid to go into the weight room every day because Rich would greet me at the door and take me through my own personal workout,” Smith explained. “He pushed me all summer. His job was to prepare me for the SEC. Eventually, I fell into a rhythm and groove, and I realized that, yeah, this is all part of the process. You learn how to be mentally tougher and stronger.
Lagway is expected to perform similarly to Smith, who carried for 1,341 yards and 13 touchdowns as a freshman over four decades ago. According to 247Sports, Lagway was the No. 2 quarterback signee in the country. As a senior, he passed for over 4,600 yards and 58 touchdowns. He rushed for 16 touchdowns and 957 yards at Willis High, helping the school to its finest season in 60 years.
Billy Napier, UF’s coach, hopes to build the program on this athlete from the 2024 recruiting class. Lagway takes it all in stride as he begins the new chapter.
“To see all the greats who have this award, I feel like it’s a good building block to what’s going to come,” he went on to say. “It is certainly a blessing. This was one of the awards I really coveted heading into the season. I’ve worked my buttocks off this offseason and in previous years to achieve this goal and success.
“I am ready for college. I’m ready to get to work. What happened in the past remains in the past. That means nothing anymore.”
Nobody knows it better than the player who Gators fans remember dashing over and past would-be tacklers while wearing the No. 22 jersey. Smith took a trip down memory lane Thursday while Lagway opened the door to the future.
He took photos with Lagway, posed with dozens of Lagway’s relatives and friends who are more familiar with Smith as a Texas superstar, talked with Napier about the Gators and Cowboys teams he remembered growing up, and took his first tour of the Heavener Football Training Center.
Smith moved from location to area like a freshman, blown away by the amenities contrasted to his undergraduate experience.
“The only thing that remains the same is the practice field,” he explained. “Today’s youth are unaware of how fortunate they are. How could you not perform to your full potential? “This is amazing.”
Smith is one of the game’s all-time great players, having witnessed the good, the bad, and the ugly. On Thursday, he met the youthful face that represents the Gators’ biggest hope. Smith clearly left an impression on the kid.
The kid also made one. “I’m excited to see him on the football field and to see how he can help turn the program around and get us back on the winning track,” Smith stated. “He can’t do it alone, but he can certainly be a valuable component of the jigsaw.He did it in high school, and I have no reason to believe he cannot do it at this level. He realizes what will be required.
“When you win the Gatorade National Football Player of the Year award, that says a whole lot about your ability and your leadership.”Injury Update for Iheanacho