Baylor Football

Breaking: Baylor Lands Florida QB and Former Five-Star DJ Lagway as 2026 Signal-Caller

The Bears land a massive quarterback prospect and a former five-star recruit.
By Grayson Grundhoefer
January 8, 2026
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82 Comments
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Photo by @Matt Pendleton

2026 Baylor Football Transfer Portal Tracker

Baylor just made an enormous splash, as former five-star Florida quarterback transfer DJ Lagway committed to the Bears following his official visit on Jan. 7, immediately reshaping the program’s trajectory.

Lagway is a consensus top-10 quarterback and top-25 overall prospect in the transfer portal rankings. DJ is also a Baylor legacy, as his father, Derek, played running back for the Bears from 1997 to 2001. He is the ninth transfer portal player to commit this cycle and the lone quarterback.

Lagway entered the 2025 season as a preseason Heisman Trophy contender, but the fall didn’t go as planned for the Gators, as head coach Billy Napier was fired midseason. Lagway threw for 2,264 yards with 16 touchdowns and 14 interceptions, while battling through some injuries.

As a freshman, he threw for 1,915 yards with 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions. He took over for an injured Graham Mertz and led the Gators to an 8-5 season with four-straight wins to close the season over LSU, Ole Miss, Florida State and Tulane.

The former Gatorade Player of the Year totaled 5,558 yards of offense and 75 touchdowns during his senior season at Willis High School (TX). During his three-year high school career, he threw for 8,393 yards and 101 touchdowns, while rushing for 2,197 yards and 29 touchdowns.

The Baylor legacy was the No. 1 quarterback in the nation for the 2024 recruiting class and a five-star prospect, according to 247Sports, and chose Florida over virtually every school in the nation.

Lagway has two years of eligibility remaining and is set to become the highest-ranked high school prospect Baylor has ever rostered. His commitment will likely create a recruiting ripple effect, helping the Bears secure an even better transfer portal class.

Overall, Lagway is an ideal fit for offensive coordinator Jake Spavital’s scheme. His elite play-action grades align perfectly with an offense built around a strong rushing attack that sets up explosive downfield throws. Plus, his mobility enhances the scheme, as evidenced by his prolific rushing production in high school, adding potentially another dynamic dimension to the offense.

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82 Comments
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Jake Spavital Green & Gold Reports Dave Aranda DJ Lagway Derek Lagway Football Football Recruiting Baylor 2025
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Discussion from...

Breaking: Baylor Lands Florida QB and Former Five-Star DJ Lagway as 2026 Signal-Caller

24,063 Views | 82 Replies | Last: 1 mo ago by boognish_bear
Booboo Bear
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In reply to Bearknuckle • 1:38p, 1/8/26
Bearknuckle said:

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BUGWBBear
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1:39p, 1/8/26
Imagine how much better it would be for him and others if we had a real HC.
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Johnny Bear
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In reply to Dia del DougO • 2:05p, 1/8/26
Dia del DougO said:
OK, groovy! I hope that attracts a few more good ones.

I hope it attracts a lot more good ones because based on the shape we're in, a few won't cut it.
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BellCountyBear
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2:06p, 1/8/26
His INT/TD ratio is basically 1.

Should be great in practice against BU's defense.
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BearlyBeloved
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2:14p, 1/8/26
Will adding Lagway cause any of our players to reverse their decisions to transfer, and instead re-up with the Bears???
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Ewalker80
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In reply to BearlyBeloved • 2:26p, 1/8/26
BearlyBeloved said:
Will adding Lagway cause any of our players to reverse their decisions to transfer, and instead re-up with the Bears???


Doubt it but the only impact players we lost on offense to portal are Bryson and Coleton price. We should be fine at rb already and we have sieraki and potentially one the transfers already to play center. Clearly this is good for keeping taz and hopefully we get the Colorado guy and one or two more pieces. We also have Louis brown iv who should contribute. WRs is the easiest position to find but I suspect we will pay a couple more big Ol pieces so we can have a running game again. And more importantly than convincing players is convincing donors to give money. Players are sadly now commodities and there are thousands of them available for the price.
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Bearknuckle
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2:39p, 1/8/26
the haters learning of DJ's commitment:


me receiving this same delicious information:

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Booboo Bear
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In reply to Bearknuckle • 3:17p, 1/8/26
Bearknuckle said:
the haters learning of DJ's commitment:


me receiving this same delicious information:


Hmm...I like the first image, but that second gif is "sub"-optimal.

[/dadjoke]
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Bearknuckle
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In reply to Booboo Bear • 3:19p, 1/8/26
Booboo Bear said:
Bearknuckle said:
the haters learning of DJ's commitment:


me receiving this same delicious information:


Hmm...I like the first image, but that second gif is "sub"-optimal.

[/dadjoke]

the two of us rn
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BBWCBear
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3:19p, 1/8/26
A liiiiiiittttle glimmer of hope. Will feel better once he's on campus, in the Football facility, got green stuff on, doing the normal things Baylor Athletes do this time of year.
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Bandito
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In reply to GoldenBear007 • 3:50p, 1/8/26
GoldenBear007 said:
IN ARANDA WE TRUST


Man I'm excited about DJ. He brings something we've been missing for way too long and that is hope. But let's not get ahead of ourselves on Dave.
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BaylorHistory
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In reply to BBWCBear • 3:52p, 1/8/26
BBWCBear said:
doing the normal things Baylor Athletes do this time of year.

Getting blasted on grain alcohol during Dia?
Noooo evidence for that, babeeyyy, just maaade it up.
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Waco1947
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4:06p, 1/8/26
Maybe some elite WRs come our way.
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whitetrash
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4:29p, 1/8/26
FWIW, BU's record during his dad's playing days was 8-36 (97-98 under Dirty Dave, 99 & 01 under Steele). So his dad can give him firsthand advice in the likely event we suck next year.
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BUATX2000
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4:33p, 1/8/26
This is unquestionably some much-needed good news in what's otherwise been a pretty bleak stretch for Baylor football optimism. That said, I'm probably in a minority here in that I've watched every single snap DJ Lagway has taken over the last two seasons, and there are some real things he'll need to clean up to succeed in Waco.

He can be a bit slow working through his reads, and despite the frame, he's not particularly elusive. If the plan is for him to survive behind a patchwork offensive line while running for his life, that's a recipe for disappointment.

Now for the upside, and it's significant. On paper, he's the most talented quarterback in the Big 12 next year, full stop. I don't think the league has seen a QB with this level of raw ability in at least five years. How high that ceiling actually goes will depend heavily on whether he can speed up his decision-making and whether the offensive staff puts him in a system that plays to his strengths while protecting him from his limitations.

If that happens, this could be a program-changing addition. If not, expectations probably need to stay tempered.
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Bigkahunaww
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4:45p, 1/8/26
Only better news is if the new AD came on and said that after his thorough review of the football program
they have decided to make a change at the head coaching position.
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Youre a clown
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In reply to BUATX2000 • 5:17p, 1/8/26
BUATX2000 said:
This is unquestionably some much-needed good news in what's otherwise been a pretty bleak stretch for Baylor football optimism. That said, I'm probably in a minority here in that I've watched every single snap DJ Lagway has taken over the last two seasons, and there are some real things he'll need to clean up to succeed in Waco.

He can be a bit slow working through his reads, and despite the frame, he's not particularly elusive. If the plan is for him to survive behind a patchwork offensive line while running for his life, that's a recipe for disappointment.

Now for the upside, and it's significant. On paper, he's the most talented quarterback in the Big 12 next year, full stop. I don't think the league has seen a QB with this level of raw ability in at least five years. How high that ceiling actually goes will depend heavily on whether he can speed up his decision-making and whether the offensive staff puts him in a system that plays to his strengths while protecting him from his limitations.

If that happens, this could be a program-changing addition. If not, expectations probably need to stay tempered.


I'm gonna have to disagree about his elusively. He is not an elite athlete like a Cam Newton or Anthony Richardson, but he moves decently well for a guy his size and can make moves in space to pick up yards. To a degree, it will be easier for him to do that against Big 12 defenders versus SEC defenders. My biggest worries are the obvious things like the fact that we have basically no offensive line, and a couple of the portal lineman we've picked up are just average Sunbelt type players. I would have slightly more confidence if we had gone out and hired a butt kicker offensive line coach, but we didn't do that unfortunately
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chorne68
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5:22p, 1/8/26
I am going to throw some cold water on this. Dax Prescott was paid an extremely large salary to stay at Dallas. They also paid a lot of money to two first round receivers. All these players are great. The problem is the defense is extremely poor, and the offensive line has Dax running for his life. To be great, a quarterback must have at least a good offensive line. To win championships, you have to have a good defense. I just hope we can get some good offensive linemen and some good defensive players. I assume Baylor is paying two million dollars for our quarterback. I am glad we have Lagway and hope he is all American at Baylor.
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BUATX2000
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In reply to Youre a clown • 5:24p, 1/8/26
Youre a clown said:
BUATX2000 said:
This is unquestionably some much-needed good news in what's otherwise been a pretty bleak stretch for Baylor football optimism. That said, I'm probably in a minority here in that I've watched every single snap DJ Lagway has taken over the last two seasons, and there are some real things he'll need to clean up to succeed in Waco.

He can be a bit slow working through his reads, and despite the frame, he's not particularly elusive. If the plan is for him to survive behind a patchwork offensive line while running for his life, that's a recipe for disappointment.

Now for the upside, and it's significant. On paper, he's the most talented quarterback in the Big 12 next year, full stop. I don't think the league has seen a QB with this level of raw ability in at least five years. How high that ceiling actually goes will depend heavily on whether he can speed up his decision-making and whether the offensive staff puts him in a system that plays to his strengths while protecting him from his limitations.

If that happens, this could be a program-changing addition. If not, expectations probably need to stay tempered.


I'm gonna have to disagree about his elusively. He is not an elite athlete like a Cam Newton or Anthony Richardson, but he moves decently well for a guy his size and can make moves in space to pick up yards. To a degree, it will be easier for him to do that against Big 12 defenders versus SEC defenders. My biggest worries are the obvious things like the fact that we have basically no offensive line, and a couple of the portal lineman we've picked up are just average Sunbelt type players. I would have slightly more confidence if we had gone out and hired a butt kicker offensive line coach, but we didn't do that unfortunately


I think we are essentially saying the same thing. He is good in the open field being able to make people miss in space. Where he is going to get into trouble is trying to make people miss when the pocket collapses.

My hope is that a return to a less dog **** offense (Napier ran a terrible scheme) will help him with quick reads. Napier loved to run everyone on 20+ yard routes.

We need quick plays with 1 or 2 reads. Not the slow developing garbage run in Gainesville the last few years.
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Youre a clown
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In reply to BUATX2000 • 5:36p, 1/8/26
BUATX2000 said:
Youre a clown said:
BUATX2000 said:
This is unquestionably some much-needed good news in what's otherwise been a pretty bleak stretch for Baylor football optimism. That said, I'm probably in a minority here in that I've watched every single snap DJ Lagway has taken over the last two seasons, and there are some real things he'll need to clean up to succeed in Waco.

He can be a bit slow working through his reads, and despite the frame, he's not particularly elusive. If the plan is for him to survive behind a patchwork offensive line while running for his life, that's a recipe for disappointment.

Now for the upside, and it's significant. On paper, he's the most talented quarterback in the Big 12 next year, full stop. I don't think the league has seen a QB with this level of raw ability in at least five years. How high that ceiling actually goes will depend heavily on whether he can speed up his decision-making and whether the offensive staff puts him in a system that plays to his strengths while protecting him from his limitations.

If that happens, this could be a program-changing addition. If not, expectations probably need to stay tempered.


I'm gonna have to disagree about his elusively. He is not an elite athlete like a Cam Newton or Anthony Richardson, but he moves decently well for a guy his size and can make moves in space to pick up yards. To a degree, it will be easier for him to do that against Big 12 defenders versus SEC defenders. My biggest worries are the obvious things like the fact that we have basically no offensive line, and a couple of the portal lineman we've picked up are just average Sunbelt type players. I would have slightly more confidence if we had gone out and hired a butt kicker offensive line coach, but we didn't do that unfortunately


I think we are essentially saying the same thing. He is good in the open field being able to make people miss in space. Where he is going to get into trouble is trying to make people miss when the pocket collapses.

My hope is that a return to a less dog **** offense (Napier ran a terrible scheme) will help him with quick reads. Napier loved to run everyone on 20+ yard routes.

We need quick plays with 1 or 2 reads. Not the slow developing garbage run in Gainesville the last few years.

He will be a better fit in our scheme. I'd also like to see us incorporate some RPO plays. His best moments are when he gets out of the pocket
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BUATX2000
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In reply to Youre a clown • 5:41p, 1/8/26
Youre a clown said:
BUATX2000 said:
Youre a clown said:
BUATX2000 said:
This is unquestionably some much-needed good news in what's otherwise been a pretty bleak stretch for Baylor football optimism. That said, I'm probably in a minority here in that I've watched every single snap DJ Lagway has taken over the last two seasons, and there are some real things he'll need to clean up to succeed in Waco.

He can be a bit slow working through his reads, and despite the frame, he's not particularly elusive. If the plan is for him to survive behind a patchwork offensive line while running for his life, that's a recipe for disappointment.

Now for the upside, and it's significant. On paper, he's the most talented quarterback in the Big 12 next year, full stop. I don't think the league has seen a QB with this level of raw ability in at least five years. How high that ceiling actually goes will depend heavily on whether he can speed up his decision-making and whether the offensive staff puts him in a system that plays to his strengths while protecting him from his limitations.

If that happens, this could be a program-changing addition. If not, expectations probably need to stay tempered.


I'm gonna have to disagree about his elusively. He is not an elite athlete like a Cam Newton or Anthony Richardson, but he moves decently well for a guy his size and can make moves in space to pick up yards. To a degree, it will be easier for him to do that against Big 12 defenders versus SEC defenders. My biggest worries are the obvious things like the fact that we have basically no offensive line, and a couple of the portal lineman we've picked up are just average Sunbelt type players. I would have slightly more confidence if we had gone out and hired a butt kicker offensive line coach, but we didn't do that unfortunately


I think we are essentially saying the same thing. He is good in the open field being able to make people miss in space. Where he is going to get into trouble is trying to make people miss when the pocket collapses.

My hope is that a return to a less dog **** offense (Napier ran a terrible scheme) will help him with quick reads. Napier loved to run everyone on 20+ yard routes.

We need quick plays with 1 or 2 reads. Not the slow developing garbage run in Gainesville the last few years.

He will be a better fit in our scheme. I'd also like to see us incorporate some RPO plays. His best moments are when he gets out of the pocket


Napier is a terrible offensive coach. He had no idea how to use the talent he had.

I hope Spav makes hay with all the tools lagway brings. We need to got get some OL help ASAP.
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BBWCBear
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6:13p, 1/8/26
Him being illusive is going to be important. Can you imagine a guy this size darting around in that God awful all mustard look? Can't miss him. Prayers
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PartyBear
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6:43p, 1/8/26
Hopefully the mustard is gone. I noticed all PR regarding players leaving and coming in shows them in either the charcoal and the chrome or all green and chrome helmet.
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boognish_bear
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6:43p, 1/8/26
I have been out of pocket most of the day... but hearing this news definitely made my day. I know this does not fix everything… But it gives me reason to have interest in watching games next year.

For whatever reason Sawyer seemed really hesitant to run this year. I don't think that will be the case with DJ. He's a big kid...it'll be like Jalen Hurts rumbling through the line. Spav has got to be loving having that threat back to give defenses one more thing to think about.

Sicem DJ!

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boognish_bear
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6:54p, 1/8/26
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hodedofome
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7:16p, 1/8/26
From my college roommate after the news hit:

"Watched this guy play HS FB for two years. He's the best HS QB I've ever seen."
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boognish_bear
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7:20p, 1/8/26
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Karab
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In reply to boognish_bear • 7:26p, 1/8/26
boognish_bear said:


This hits me in the feels, gives me hope, and makes me feel old all at once
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boognish_bear
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9:28p, 1/8/26
I still think about this run prolly a few times every year...it was so bad ass

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boognish_bear
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10:52p, 1/8/26
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bear2be2
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In reply to BBWCBear • 10:52p, 1/8/26
BBWCBear said:
A liiiiiiittttle glimmer of hope. Will feel better once he's on campus, in the Football facility, got green stuff on, doing the normal things Baylor Athletes do this time of year.

Exactly. I'm just looking for reasons to care about next season. This helps.

Let's add five or six more potential difference-makers through the portal around the depth guys we add and see what happens.
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DAC
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In reply to boognish_bear • 9:15a, 1/9/26
boognish_bear said:
I still think about this run prolly a few times every year...it was so bad ass


Bully
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boognish_bear
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12:13p, 1/9/26
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In reply to boognish_bear • 12:39p, 1/9/26
boognish_bear said:
I still think about this run prolly a few times every year...it was so bad ass


This would make for an awesome intro to a hype video at McLane next year!
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matthew44
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In reply to boognish_bear • 1:15p, 1/9/26
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