Kirk Herbstreit addresses expectations for LaNorris Sellers, DJ Lagway after disappointing 2025 seasons

Following stellar freshman seasons, South Carolina‘s LaNorris Sellers and Florida‘s DJ Lagway were tabbed as potential Heisman Trophy candidates heading into their respective sophomore campaigns. That, however, did not come to fruition for either quarterback.

Sellers, who dealt with the injury bug all season long, passed for 2,437 yards and just 13 touchdowns with eight interceptions across 12 games. His ability to break off big gains on the ground completely vanished, as his rushing yardage dropped from 674 yards and seven touchdowns in 2024 to 270 yards and five touchdowns in 2025. The Gamecocks were on the verge of slipping into the 2024 College Football Playoff, but finished just 4-8 last season.

Lagway spent the entire offseason dealing with a shoulder injury, which ultimately came back to bite him. He played in all 12 of Florida‘s games last season, but passed for just 2,264 yards and 16 touchdowns. Lagway threw 14 interceptions, with five of those coming in the Gators’ 20-10 loss to No. 3 LSU on Sept. 13. He just never seemed to be comfortable last season, and it resulted in a 4-8 record, which led to the removal of head coach Billy Napier.

Kirk Herbstreit discusses expectations for LaNorris Sellers, DJ Lagway

LaNorris Sellers will be embarking on his third season as South Carolina‘s starting quarterback, while DJ Lagway opted for a scenery reset. He entered the Transfer Portal and ended up at Baylor, succeeding Sawyer Robertson. Months before the 2026 season kicks off, ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit joined ‘Crain & Cone‘ to discuss expectations for the two quarterbacks.

“I went into last year and said ‘(LaNorris Sellers) is gonna have a monster year,” Herbstreit said. “He had played well and played through some injuries the year before. I was part of the hype train. I thought they had enough weapons around him to have a solid year, but they got off the radar pretty quickly. I really felt, if you looked at Florida and South Carolina, both quarterbacks did much worse than we expected.

“I really thought we’d see some big years from both of them coming out of the SEC. (DJ) Lagway to me… I can’t quite figure him out. I thought, much like Sellers, we saw enough of him in 2024 to think he’d be everywhere in 2025, making plays. I had him against Miami early in the year, and his decision-making was indecisive. He didn’t look like the same player playing with confidence, but he’s another guy that dealt with injuries.”

2026 looks to be a make-or-break year for the duo of Sellers and Lagway.