'A little bit better than I thought' – Former Tennessee Vols QB is fitting in well with top SEC rival
A somewhat forgotten former Tennessee Vols quarterback is front and center at Florida Gators spring practice this month. DJ Lagway, Florida's starting quarterback, is limited during spring practice due to a shoulder injury. With Lagway unlikely to throw before the end of spring, it's meant increased reps for sixth-year senior quarterback Harrison Bailey. Bailey, a […]
A somewhat forgotten former Tennessee Vols quarterback is front and center at Florida Gators spring practice this month.
DJ Lagway, Florida's starting quarterback, is limited during spring practice due to a shoulder injury. With Lagway unlikely to throw before the end of spring, it's meant increased reps for sixth-year senior quarterback Harrison Bailey.
Bailey, a former four-star recruit, transferred to Florida earlier this offseason. The Georgia native spent the first two years of his college career at Tennessee before leaving for UNLV. Bailey also spent two seasons at Louisville.
On3's Andy Staples noted this week that it's likely going to be the "Harrison Bailey show" at Florida this spring.
From On3: So while it isn’t ideal to have Lagway limited to running plays on air now, it would be far worse to not have him throwing in August. Expect spring to be the Harrison Bailey show. Bailey, a sixth-year senior who originally signed in 2020 to play for Jeremy Pruitt at Tennessee, has had an odyssey of a career. After two years at Tennessee he went to UNLV for a year and then landed at Louisville, where he backed up Jack Plummer and then Tyler Shough. When Shough opted out of the Sun Bowl, Bailey filled in and threw three touchdown passes in the Cardinals’ shootout win against Washington.
Gators offensive coordinator Russ Callaway has already been impressed with Bailey and true freshman Tramell Jones.
"Both of them got a cannon…they're both extremely accurate," said Callaway this week of Bailey and Jones.
"I was very impressed," continued Callaway. "I knew they were both good. I'll be honest with you, I think they're a little bit better than I thought — and that's obviously a good thing. So I'm super excited about both those guys."
Keeping Lagway healthy will be key to Florida's success in 2025. If he's unable to go at any point this season, it sounds like it'll be Bailey who will be the next man up.
I'm sure Tennessee fans are already imagining a scenario where the Vols travel to Gainesville in November and end up facing off against Bailey.
A former Vol who is a backup quarterback for the Gators is the stuff that nightmares are made of for Tennessee fans.
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