Star Gators freshman DJ Lagway barely trails Arch Manning in College Football 25 ratings

College Football 25 finally drops this week, and many of those who pre-ordered the game can access it as early as Monday afternoon. With that comes the full reveal of roster ratings and program prestige. One of our big areas of interest is where the incoming 2024 freshman fell.

Florida QB DJ Lagway's rating was revealed before launch, and it's eerily similar to former 5-star and mega recruit Arch Manning of Texas.

Florida Gators QB DJ Lagway Trails Arch Manning in CFB 25 Ratings

While Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith earned the top rating for any freshman in College Football 25, the QB1 in the class isn't far behind. According to On3's Hayes Fawcett, Lagway fell into place as an 80 overall. He's tied with Nebraska's Dylan Raiola and above Ohio State's Julian Sayin.

The 6-foot-2, 230-pound Lagway figures to be excellent as a user-controlled player. He ranked as the third overall player in the 2024 class, and he'll get to sit behind Graham Mertz this fall and learn the playbook. Lagway, from Willis, Texas, had a 99.23 rating from On3 .

His experience in a spread system should benefit his transition to Florida. His completion and touchdown rates spiked massively over the later parts of his career. He's gone from a great athlete to someone with a better passing process and cleaner mechanics.

Interesting, for as much buzz and hype around Arch Manning, Lagway is four points behind him overall. However, Manning has attempted only two career passes. For as optimistic as I am about this game, it can be frustrating to see a player get a boost for their profile over their actual ability.

That's sometimes the name of the game. As much as I like Shedeur Sanders as an NFL prospect (he's solid, not amazing), he shouldn't be ranked over someone like Dillon Gabriel after just one year.