GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Poor DJ Lagway. You’ve got to believe he knows what he is missing. This is not the spring camp for a quarterback to be unable to fire away.

Not with the new targets in town.

“We’ve got four really talented new receivers,” Gators head coach Billy Napier said.

As Lagway takes time for additional body maintenance on his shoulder and lower body, backups Harrison Bailey, Clay Millen and freshman Tramell Jones Jr. will make most of the throws.

The four newcomers Napier mentioned this week are J. Michael Sturdivant, a transfer from UCLA, and early enrollees Vernell Brown III, Dallas Wilson and Naeshaun Montgomery. The Gators restocked the position impressively in their quest to replace the production of Chimere Dike and Elijhah Badger from a season ago.

 

Sturdivant is the veteran who arrived with 123 career receptions for 1,667 yards and 13 touchdowns. The 6-foot-3, 216-pound Texan had his best season in 2022 when he caught 65 passes for 755 yards and seven scores at Cal, where he spent two seasons before transferring to UCLA.

According to Napier, Sturdivant put up notable numbers in the Gators’ offseason conditioning program, reaching as high as 23 mph in sprint drills.

“J. Mike has put on over 15 pounds since he got here,” said Tyler Miles, Florida’s director of strength and conditioning. “And he just keeps getting faster and stronger.”

Rather than enter the NFL Draft after last season, Sturdivant entered the transfer portal and quickly drew interest from the Gators. Napier envisions him as a downfield threat like Badger in his only season at UF.

“The big-play potential is there,” Napier said. “He’s also very smart, mature. He’s hit the ground running. He’s been impressive so far.”

Meanwhile, Brown signed with the Gators out of Jones High in Orlando, where he was the Florida Dairy Farmers Class 4A Player of the Year and the No. 6-ranked prep receiver prospect in the nation, according to 247Sports.com.

“He’s got what I can’t coach, alright, and that’s speed,” special teams senior analyst Joe Houston said.

Brown is not your typical freshman. He grew up around the Gators for several years while his father, former UF defensive back Vernell Brown Jr., served in the program’s student-athlete development department.

A 5-foot-11, 172-pound dynamic athlete, Brown caught 94 passes for 1,508 yards and 11 touchdowns to help Jones reach the Class 4A championship game.

“That kid, he can cut the lights off on plays,” veteran teammate Tyreak Sapp raved this week. “I feel like he can cut the lights off right now. That’s how strongly I feel about him, not just his work ethic but his understanding of the game.

“He’s probably seen these things because his father played. But the kid has a tremendous work ethic. He understands the game and he’s going to go a long way, not just solely because of how athletic he is. It’s his mental.”

The 6-foot-3, 209-pound Wilson is another Florida product. He grew up in Tampa and starred at Tampa Bay Tech last season, catching 41 passes for 677 yards and nine touchdowns. Wilson initially signed a financial aid agreement with Oregon, but the Ducks released him so he could sign with a school closer to home.

It didn’t take long for the athletic Wilson, ranked the 39th overall prospect in the 2025 recruiting class by ESPN, to make an impression on Miles in conditioning drills.

“Dallas Wilson is a mutant,” Miles said. “He’s still young. The young guys always make us look like geniuses.”

Montgomery (6-1, 185) signed with the Gators out of Central High in Miami. He caught 25 passes for 537 yards and four touchdowns as a senior. He is competing for playing time within a group that includes returners Eugene Wilson III, Aidan Mizell, TJ Abrams, Tank Hawkins and veteran Kahleil Jackson, who is coming off season-ending knee surgery.

The newcomers are just starting, but Florida’s depth at the position is more potent than any of Napier’s first three seasons.

“At some point, we’re hopeful that K-Jack will be back to himself, and then here comes Mizell, Tank Hawkins, TJ Abrams,” Napier said. “In general, that group is faster, more explosive. I think the skill level’s been impressive so far, so it’s going to be a very, very competitive room.”

Offensive coordinator Russ Callaway, who met with reporters Saturday afternoon, is eager to see more of the group as spring camp progresses.

But he left no doubt about where he stands on what he has seen so far.

“The young guys we signed at receiver, I mean, holy cow,” Callaway said. “Those guys are really good players, but they’re extremely hard workers. I have not seen a young group like this, not just about the ability that they have, but it’s almost annoying how much they’re up here wanting to get extra work.

“And that’s when you know you’re on the right ones.”