Florida QB DJ Lagway resumes throwing after resting sore shoulder during spring practice

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Florida quarterback DJ Lagway has resumed throwing after resting his ailing right shoulder throughout spring practice.

Lagway posted two short videos on social media Monday of him making throws at CORTX Sports Performance in Ponde Vedra Beach, a training center near Jacksonville that has worked with current NFL quarterbacks Brock Purdy, Anthony Richardson, Jordan Travis and Gardner Minshew.

It was a positive step forward for Lagway, a sophomore who reported shoulder soreness in the offseason that carried over from last year. He was limited in spring practice and then played just five snaps in the team's annual spring game, all of them ending in handoffs.

The Gators took a cautious approach with Lagway in hopes of giving his throwing shoulder extra time to heal. Lagway also was recovering from a core muscle injury that coach Billy Napier referred to as “lower-body stuff.”

In his final three years at Willis High School in Texas, Lagway threw 849 passes for 8,264 yards and 99 touchdowns and ran 278 times for 1,684 yards and 29 more scores. He also serves as a pitcher on the baseball team, leaving his shoulder little downtime.

Lagway missed some practice time as a freshman last fall with shoulder soreness, a lingering issue from his high school days in Texas. But it never caused him to miss a game.

He was sidelined one game last November while recovering from a strained left hamstring he suffered against Georgia. But he started every game after, including Florida’s bowl victory against Tulane in December.

Napier said the plan to sit him during spring was “to be very smart.” Now, given rest, he is expected to be full go when the team reconvenes for workouts in June.

Lagway completed 60% of his passes for 1,915 yards, with 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions as a freshman last season. He took over the starting role after Graham Mertz tore a knee ligament at Tennessee in October.

The Gators signed college journeyman Harrison Bailey to be Lagway’s backup this fall. Bailey has played at Tennessee, UNLV and Louisville.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl