There was a time where… I was in his shoes.
I was a young guy, but now I'm coming back for my sixth year.
Everybody calls me grandpa.
Being a freshman,
being a five-star quarterback,
coming all the way down here to Gainesville, Florida…
Let's go out here and ball out.
I know he's a special player,
but I'm the starting quarterback. That's my job right now.
I can make plays every single time I play the game.
As a coach, as a leader,
there's tough decisions at the quarterback position.
Puts you in a really challenging spot.
It's like this is what I was born to do.
Good evening. Welcome to Gator Talk,
the official start to a Florida football home weekend.
After two losing seasons,
Florida fans are really looking to start this year hot.
It'll be Graham Mertz's team.
He's the alpha. He's the leader of this ball club.
We'll find out on the field exactly what happens.
Playing quarterback at the University of Florida,
it's a privilege.
I gotta honor that every day.
Graham Mertz, quarterback,
sixth-year senior.
We have a rich history of Heisman-winning quarterbacks.
All-American Steve Spurrier.
When Florida has been good…
Wuerffel going for broke. The man there, touchdown!
…the Gators have almost always had a quarterback who is a star.
Tebow's in the end zone.
Oh my goodness!
I wake up every day, and I push myself to that standard.
Just like I have my entire life.
My earliest memory is throwing a football with my dad.
When I think about first time touching a football,
that was what it was.
I knew, probably, when I was going into, like, middle school
that I'm a football player, I'm a quarterback.
-How you doing? -I'm all right.
-Nice to meet you. -Good to see you.
-Hey, Danny. -Nice to meet you.
We'll start with Tebow and Wuerffel on the practice field,
walking towards that gate.
Mertz will be laying in that middle chair.
Uh, they'll get up, greet each other,
and then sit down.
Expectations for the quarterback at Florida are incredibly high.
You're gonna be compared
to every Heisman-winning quarterback who's played there.
I hate this. I'm the only one not wearing Gator stuff.
You know that…
Graham Mertz is wearing that number 15 that Tim Tebow
wore at Florida.
Everyone is gonna be watching to see if Graham can deliver a great season.
Let's go in three, two, one.
Good to see you, man.
In your persona, you look so relaxed, so confident.
I feel like the pressure has diminished.
-You feel at home. -Yeah.
He's almost 30 years old.
He's like, in his tenth year. I think that helps.
Yeah, I got my teammates calling me grandpa.
I've been watching you for quite a few years.
I remember when you came on the college football scene.
You've experienced a lot of highs. You've experienced a few lows.
Oh yeah.
I feel like you've handled this journey with a lot of grace.
Before transferring to Florida, I was at Wisconsin for four years.
Coming out of Wisconsin,
the narrative was I'm not really good enough for Florida.
Graham Mertz was one of the highest rated quarterbacks
that Wisconsin ever signed.
He starts as a redshirt freshman quarterback.
He was pretty inconsistent there.
He didn't quite live up to the hype.
So heading into 2023,
Florida fans are looking at this guy, and they're very uncertain.
Is this deep enough? We gotta get your first completion of the year.
People can say whatever they want whenever they want.
I'm just trying to prove every single day that this is the right fit.
-We're gonna let you get back to work. -Appreciate you guys.
-That was fun. Good to see you. -You know Miami is a big one, right?
-I do. -Yeah.
Good, bad, or ugly, the reality of being a quarterback
at University of Florida,
there's always gonna be stuff that's gonna be talked about you.
Gator Nation.
It's big, man.
Nothing like being on that field
with the entire Gator Nation around you supporting you.
It's truly special.
Mertz running out of time. Going down.
At the biggest schools, it all comes down to wins and losses.
You lose five games in a row,
the next morning, you wake up, car's covered in mustard, eggshells.
You deal with a lot as a quarterback.
The one thing I would tell fans is, "We feel the same way."
Like, "I hope you know that."
"Hope we're not just out here trying to sabotage your plans."
I appreciate that. Thank you.
-Hey, coach, can I get a shot? -Yeah, for sure.
-Here we go! -Hey. How are you?
My daughter's too shy to come up here. She says, "Mom, that's embarrassing."
Good to see you again.
-Nice to meet you. -Thank you for your service.
We compete in a profession
where production, ultimately, is how you get measured.
When it's good, it's great.
When it's bad, it's worse.
You get to decompress on Sunday?
There's no such thing as decompressing.
Marker.
I'm Billy Napier. I'm the head coach of the Florida Gators.
Everybody say hello to Billy Napier.
Thank you, Sean. Good to be back.
It's great to be back.
Going into the opener against Miami,
you said at one point,
"Let all the people say what they want about us."
"We've got something to show them immediately."
Twenty-three years old,
Graham Mertz will be your starting quarterback on Saturday.
This is his team, and that's become quite clear as well.
What's this version of Graham Mertz gonna look like starting Saturday?
His presence, his leadership. He's a veteran player.
He's got a lot of poise. It's not too big for him.
-He's gonna finish his career strong here. -He is gonna enter Saturday's game…
We have a hungry fan base.
They want that pride element to be back.
There's a level of impatience.
Glad you're here to kick off the football weekend.
-Billy Napier, everybody. -Thank you.
It's year three.
I'm hopeful that we may be over the hump here.
I'm excited. I'm looking forward to what's in front of us.
Florida's had quite the drought.
Being an SEC Championship, National Championship program,
for Gator fans,
the hope was that Billy Napier would be the guy to turn things around,
to create a winning program.
Under Billy Napier, they have struggled to get back to those heights.
This fan base, they're not gonna give you much time.
He is running out of time to impress.
-I love this shit! -I love this shit!
-Forty-eight hours, let's grind one out! -Win!
My dad used to say,
"Football's about people, strategy, and competition."
-Low jacks, team, ready? -Ready!
Exercise!
Better people make better football players,
and better leaders contribute to winning.
Graham obviously is the epitome of that.
Graham's gonna be an incredible teacher for DJ Lagway,
the future of the program.
Game day detail, here we go.
We've been watching the guy practice.
We know he's outstanding and very talented.
He's still a young player putting it together.
Go, go, go.
I thought it was good.
-You got 3-over-2 zone over there. -Beat that corner.
-He'd be over here. -Yes, sir.
We're putting this place back to where it's been before.
All right, we're within the final 48 hours.
More detail, more focus, more urgency.
We gotta continue to work, right?
Let's rock and roll.
The player that Gator Nation is most excited about,
the one everybody wants to see,
is DJ Lagway.
He's 6'3",
he's 240 pounds,
rocket arm.
For the next three to four years, I'm excited to become a Gator.
He has Heisman potential.
Since his arrival on campus, the conversation about DJ Lagway is,
is this the next great Florida quarterback?
Let's just real quick go through some of the corrections,
then review the install from yesterday.
From the top, Graham. Go ahead.
I'm stepping out of it, making sure everybody gets their signal.
-Mm-hmm. -Then step in, call the play.
Very good. Everybody good there?
Any questions there?
-So it's more of a safety response? -Yep.
When you're a young quarterback, now in a stadium with 100,000 people.
In high school you might have had 500, 600.
Okay, where are we starting on this one, DJ?
Uh, spikes, uh, left-drop.
Good, you can run this--
-So am I pressing it… -To the call sign, yeah.
Offense, got a lot more on your plate.
Like I said earlier, my time at Wisconsin, there was a lot thrown at me.
Physically, emotionally, it's so hard for a freshman to come in and play.
Nice ball.
Hayden's getting his celebration. A lot of talk about Hayden's celebrations…
We all did it.
-What was it, the archers? -Okay.
As a coach and a teacher, you're trying to, step by step,
introduce them to a complex game
in a way that just gives him confidence going forward.
I hope he's got a new celebration ready for this year.
The SEC is a place where defenses are so good,
that if you're a coach,
you don't wanna break the confidence of a young player.
But if you're a fan, you're not thinking that way.
You're thinking, this guy, he's gonna be the savior of the program.
So why are we farting around with this other guy?
Florida and Miami, these fan bases hate each other.
Billy Napier cannot afford to throw a game or two away
while DJ Lagway is learning.
I don't think there's a more difficult schedule in the entire country
than the one assigned to Florida.
A lot of us believe this Gators outfit
is the best one that Napier's had yet.
And today, Mertz makes his 44th start of his career.
Mertz, quick to the outside,
to the very talented Tre Wilson.
If Mertz gets protected,
a lot of people feel he can have a really nice game.
Complete, and into the end zone!
Ball was batted down!
Gators are now 0-for-five on third down.
One play at a time!
And it goes to the end zone, and it is a touchdown.
What can we trust about the Gators?
The number one answer to that would be Graham Mertz.
You can trust that he's gonna go out and execute.
It's an uphill climb now.
Intercepted at the five-yard line.
Powell's got it. Still on his feet.
Finally wrestled out of bounds.
Mertz is down and needing attention at the 32-yard line.
And not the start to the season the Gators were hoping for.
Billy, you're a bum!
Protect your offense!
You're a bum!
You're a bum, Billy!
Coach, given the experience
and how confident you were going into the season,
just how disappointing and surprising was this performance?
I mean, it's embarrassing, to be quite honest with you.
We have to do better.
Billy, how's Graham doing?
Graham had a concussion,
um, and he's gonna be in protocol.
I'll have more answers for you on Monday.
What are we doing in Gainesville?
I bought in to the Billy Napier bullshit.
you have seen from Florida.
By Saturday night,
fans were essentially done with Billy Napier.
It was shocking to see how quickly a fan base turns.
This is where I first saw a gator.
-Really? -Right here.
Getting a concussion does not feel the best.
You're just kind of in, like, a haze for a few days.
We knew that we were such a better team.
That was really frustrating for the guys.
We gotta get the guys together.
Yeah, I agree. Just being like, "What do we gotta improve?"
"What do we gotta work on?" And kind of having that self-reflection.
End of the day, we know we have all the pieces we need
to be successful offensively and as a team, so…
I can't do anything to help this team win right now.
So for me it was like, okay, like, I'm frustrated.
Execution details, that's what games come down to.
Coach Napier will do a really good job
of putting us in the best position possible.
For sure, for sure.
-Mm. -That turtle's huge, dude.
-Where? -See him?
-Oh my God. -So cool.
He wants to throw here on second down.
Using his feet to buy time.
He's run out of bounds, but he's gone out after the sticks.
He's looking to throw it.
Finds his tight end.
Spin move.
Touchdown, Florida!
Go, Gators.
I need a touchdown pass.
Here they come.
Seeing myself in a game was crazy.
It's something you dream about, you know, playing as yourself on a game.
Uh, it was definitely a pretty pinch-myself moment.
They say your name on the video game.
It's like better than the game. It's pretty cool.
You never know when your opportunity's gonna come.
I didn't think it was gonna be in the beginning of the season.
But with Graham being injured, that's when it hit me.
When it happened and stuff like that, it was like, wow, you're that guy now.
Starting my first Florida game is a surreal moment.
You know, it's a dream, but I caught myself feeling overwhelmed.
Think DJ Lagway will have success tomorrow?
The sentiment as a fan is we got somebody in Lagway.
In high school,
I was the number one quarterback in the country.
There's been a lot of expectations, especially with me coming to Florida.
People don't recognize,
that transition, high school to college, that's a big challenge to overcome.
If he gets a good release and comes flat, you can body-ball,
but it'll be a catch-tackle at the 3.
It's gonna be a bang-bang body-ball placement.
Fans expect a five-start recruit to come in right away and win games,
and, you know, I feel like that's unfair.
Nice verticals concept right here I want you to watch.
That corner squatted on you, and you got over the hunt, right?
You cannot make that mistake again.
Millions of people watch your game every week,
depending on me to make the play, and what if I was doing bad?
How would it be?
Hundred-and-some thousand just screaming, booing at you.
Talking crazy fan base talking crazy to you.
Keep it simple at the line. Have a plan and be decisive.
This is a very important game.
There's a buzz around DJ to be the starter.
-No fear! Cut it loose! -Yes, sir.
Go be the type of men and football players I know you can be.
Really sensitive situation of DJ showing up as a young player.
Zero starts, zero experience.
If DJ struggles for a few possessions, I hope that confidence stays intact.
DJ Lagway,
first true freshman to start a game at Florida since 2014.
DJ Lagway! DJ Lagway!
Play clean, you got me?
Today is gonna be a good day.
Play clean.
Let's go.
Just felt so good to just go out there and make plays.
You always dream about it,
and until you're out there, there's nothing, nothing to match it.
It was amazing.
DJ! DJ! DJ!
First career touchdown pass for DJ Lagway.
The beauty of that game is we saw DJ Lagway was special.
He was that guy.
DJ Lagway, 18 of 25, 456 yards.
A new true freshman record.
DJ Lagway!
It felt so good to just go out there and play as well as I did.
DJ Lagway!
-Come on, boy! -Oh my God!
Oh my God!
456 yards?! Oh my God, DJ!
Oh my God. Play that hot shit!
-Play that hot shit! -It's an honor.
I'm not playing around with that shit.
We on DJ Lagway time!
We gonna Lagway down tonight!
The future of the program is Lagway.
Should he be starting quarterback moving forward
for this Florida program?
DJ Lagway should start the rest of the games.
Florida fans deserve a right to have something to rally around.
Hey, Lagway!
Life has definitely been different.
There's a lot of fans showing a tremendous amount of love.
Lagway!
I feel great, you know? I don't… I don't really have any nerves.
'Cause I know I can play and can do it.
I feel like life just goes full circle,
'cause just two years ago, I was a recruit at these games.
Then it was like, wow, you're the starter.
And I feel like we're finna explode, and we're finna get on a hot run.
I'm excited for it, you know? And it's gonna be a fun journey.
The reality of the game is I got a concussion against Miami,
and next week, DJ comes in, he plays really well.
Throws five touchdowns in The Swamp.
Use the clock for time. Okay?
Five times, 30 seconds.
That's gonna help us win.
So as a coach, that's the coach's job.
As a player, if I'm not doing it to the best of my ability,
then if he is, yeah, put him in, 100 percent.
Now, whenever my number's called, I gotta be ready to go.
Any time you're in a leadership role,
people always look to you, in good times and bad times,
to see how you respond to certain situations.
Hey, guys.
That's my girl right there.
-You good? -Yeah.
Florida opens SEC play against a Texas A&M team
that has a nasty, nasty defense.
The question is,
which of these quarterbacks is Billy Napier gonna choose to start?
We got two pretty special quarterbacks here, for sure.
Both players bring different elements to the game.
DJ Lagway has a combination of size and athleticism.
Don't overlook the emotional maturity.
And then there's the alpha.
Graham Mertz, with incredible experience,
has the ability to impact the team from a leadership standpoint,
going all the way back to the offseason.
Look, we're gonna do what's in the best interests of the team.
Both these players can make our team better.
So we intend to use both of them.
There's an adage in college football,
"If you have two quarterbacks, you have no quarterback."
And that's what this situation feels like.
Florida fans, they're thinking that DJ Lagway is the guy.
Why don't you just start him?
Now, when it's true Cover 5, DJ, we're what?
-Playing off the vise. -Playing off the vise of who?
-The linebackers. -Yeah, the Money and the Mack.
Napier says, no, we're gonna play them both.
Eyes, feet, compete.
Guys got me?
Graham Mertz is back from a concussion, and will start.
DJ Lagway will also play.
All right, let's go!
Drops the ball, and incomplete.
Man, that was close.
DJ Lagway!
Gators back on offense.
Pattern of alternating the two quarterbacks continues
for head coach Billy Napier.
We'll make mistakes, 2. Keep your head up and go on.
There was a lot of anger with Napier.
A lot of people furious.
Into the end zone, where it is intercepted.
Goes inside… that ball is picked off!
Pick-six in The Swamp!
Bye, Billy!
Their biggest donors, they start calling each other.
Sound the alarm, red alert kind of calls.
They're basically saying,
"We need to get the money together to buy out Billy Napier."
All right. Come in here, as close as we can get.
Our football team, and this organization, is my responsibility, okay?
All right, and when we don't have success, it's my fault, all right? It's my fault.
-Everybody understand that? -Yes, sir.
It's critical that we stick together.
Regardless of how we played in the first three weeks.
It-- It will be hell out there now.
It's gonna be hell on the outside. Do not allow them to divide us.
Florida, a ten on the panic meter.
Fans, instead of beating the traffic, they stuck around to boo him.
Lagway's not gonna have success, Mertz isn't gonna,
Billy can't coach.
-Who'll be next coach? -It feels over for Billy.
New criticism is part of the arena.
I tend to not take it personal.
I don't view it as pressure.
I think it's just part of leadership.
I think you gotta filter through outside opinion, outside noise.
I just think you try to… try to do right by the people you're responsible for.
That's the way I know how to be the head coach, you know?
I haven't done it any other way.
Go, Gators.
We want DJ Lagway!
You know, that's dad there.
That's kind of the sermon that was read at his, uh, funeral there.
What he told me, "No complaining. Make a difference."
You know, and he kind of lived that out.
My dad, uh, was diagnosed with ALS.
And that was very challenging. Um…
And the way he was able to take that on,
you know, he said, "Look, we're… we're not gonna complain."
His ability to navigate that…
I don't think that I saw the guy flinch… …all the way to the very end.
He made me a better leader.
He taught me to disregard the hype.
You know, you gotta trust your gut.
I think adversity presents…
You choose character, or you can choose to compromise.
I think ultimately, for me, you're not gonna make everybody happy.
We gotta do what we need to do, go beat Tennessee.
It's important for us to hit the reset button.
Tennessee has a really good football team.
You have to be tough-minded to go play on the road.
One thing I've learned is the importance of the playing experience.
Graham, obviously, he's got his PhD in that stuff,
so he's gonna continue to start.
DJ, he is progressing nicely though.
It'll be about 102,000.
He would be better off just going with Lagway.
He's too honorable. Old-school football coach
generally believes my veteran guy, my team leader,
the guy that lead us in workouts all summer long, is the better guy.
Here we go!
If it gets loud in there, that's the cue.
We know what we're thinking about. Everybody got me?
Complementary football. Hunt as a team.
-"Together" on three. 1, 2, 3. -Together!
Graham was with the ones, I was with the twos.
I was totally fine with that.
But, of course, there was times I felt like I should've been playing more.
But any player that plays the game of football feels like that, you know?
Here in Knoxville,
the Gators try to upset eighth-ranked Tennessee.
Let's go! Let's go!
We moved the ball. We moved the ball.
We were going up and down the field.
Yeah!
But we just couldn't finish the drive.
That was the most frustrating thing about that game.
The Gators lead it three to nothing here at the half.
This is our game. Go take it.
Keep them at zero! That what we gotta do. Let's do it.
-Who got my back? -I got your back!
Thirty seconds, coach! 30!
Yeah, right! Let's go put some money on their books!
Mertz throws!
Touchdown, Gators!
I kinda knew it was serious 'cause it was his knee,
and I was like, "Man." I was just praying he was okay.
So I didn't really think much about playing.
You're going in. Let's go.
When I got in the game,
it was kinda going through my head that we gotta get this W.
Let's go.
This is my first big-time away game.
I didn't really know how to, you know, to react to all that.
He's coming back.
-You can't give up! -Gotta fucking believe.
You gotta believe.
Lagway to throw. He's got plenty of time.
Throws!
It's intercepted at the 35-yard line, on the near side.
Tennessee gets it right back, and it's returned to the 20.
End up throwing an interception.
Come off the field,
like, really gut-wrenching for me, and it really hurt.
And I felt like I was letting my teammates down.
Broken tackle. Ten, five, touchdown to the right side for Tennessee.
The Gators answer the 17 unanswered points by Tennessee
and send this game to overtime.
He's got the leg, but he missed it.
He missed it.
Takes the snap, turns, hands it off.
Breaks the plane. Touchdown, Tennessee.
And the Volunteers have won it in overtime.
Before we get going here,
just in terms of injuries, I wanna go ahead and declare Graham, um…
Mertz has torn his ACL, and he will be done for the season.
It really hit me when I went into the locker room and…
The looks on their faces.
It's hard. It's hard.
Frustrating, frustrating loss.
I don't have faith at all in this coach anymore.
I genuinely blame the coaching.
That loss is 150% on Billy Napier.
Should only be a few-hour thing, huh?
Four or five hours?
Well, Maya said since it's just your ACL,
it'll be a little bit shorter than typical.
Maybe an hour and a half.
I'll have a new knee.
Yep.
Stronger, better.
I've never torn an ACL, but…
I knew I did it.
-We're working on your left knee? -Left knee, correct.
I love football with all my heart.
I can gladly say
you're the first person that ever shaved my leg.
-First time this leg has ever been shaved. -Wow.
So for me, it's like this can't be real.
That was kind of my first thought.
When I give you the sedation, sometimes it makes people a little sleepy.
-So that's why I support you. -How's this look?
It's been a long journey.
And for it to go out that way, like, come on, man.
-Love you. -Love you too, Mom.
-I'll see you in a jiffy. -Okay.
Love you, Mama.
Love you too.
My name's Holly, I'm the nurse anesthetist…
What can I… what can I do now?
We'll take great care of you.
When there are reports that $27 million of buy-out money
have been raised,
how do you not take that personally?
I mean, I don't-- I don't necessarily…
Yeah, I mean, if you sat around
and worried about everything you heard on the outside, you--
Any time you spend on that, you're wasting time.
The noise, it's not going away.
You know? So…
In the final piece, the center of that circle,
is that resilient component.
For our group to kind of galvanize and turn the page…
We got a Kentucky team coming in here,
and we're gonna be playing with a rookie quarterback.
…everyone has gotta raise their level of play.
Florida and Kentucky.
A big game for both of these teams.
This is a pivot point, as the Gators begin
the second half of their season.
Kentucky has beaten Billy Napier two years in a row.
Florida got dominated by Kentucky in Lexington in 2023.
-DJ! -DJ Lagway!
For years and years, Florida never lost to Kentucky.
This is one of the biggest sticking points that people have with Billy Napier.
He cannot beat the Kentucky Wildcats.
Here we go. Everybody up, let's go.
Napier?
A dead man walking as there is in the coaching business right now.
We would find out whether DJ Lagway was enough
to save and salvage Billy Napier's career.
DJ Lagway, this is gonna be his first SEC start.
So easily the biggest of his young career.
Since I got injured, I made a deal with myself.
I can either sit and be upset and feel sorry for myself,
or I can embrace it, attack it…
Might not be playing, but I can definitely help.
We'll keep it here.
With 8:15 left to go in the second quarter,
the Gators are back on top.
Leading 13 to six.
Want me to give you the calls?
-Yeah, you got it? -Yeah, I'll tell you.
We get to do this the rest of the year together.
Throw that thing. Throw it!
Oh! Oh! Oh! Oh, oh…
I'm saying in my head, "No, no, no, no." Like, dang, not again.
I got to the sideline, I was just struggling.
I was thinking everybody's gonna be mad.
-Three and out! -Let's go now!
-Let's go! -We need that ball! We need that ball!
Gators defense here is pinned deep.
DJ, keep your head up, dude.
When you go in, just be you and have fun.
That's what you gotta do playing this game.
Don't worry, DJ!
Graham, he's talking about the defense and how they were gonna get this stop.
"We got you. You're straight, bro. You're good."
Gators with a defensive stand down near the goal line.
In high school, everything was depending on me to make the play.
I don't know if he got the first down. They blow the play dead.
No, he's short!
They got that goal line stop, and that was huge for me.
'Cause, like, it's not all on you, you know what I mean?
And it's like, you have guys around you that are contributing, make plays.
You are ready.
You ain't gotta be anything bigger than yourself.
Come on, Deej, put it in.
Vertical, vertical, vertical.
Lagway showing that big arm.
Badger has it inside the 15!
That was DJ's favorite play.
-Yeah? -I knew he was gonna hit it.
Here's Baugh. Hands it around, got a great block,
and he will walk it into the end zone.
Touchdown!
Yeah! Yeah!
In what has been a nightmare season,
in a blink of an eye, everything can change.
Lagway to throw. This one is perfect.
'Cause all of a sudden, as a Florida fan,
you're starting to see reasons for optimism.
Now it's the DJ Lagway show.
There you go! There you go!
No, I won't back down
I won't back down
Hey, baby
There ain't no easy way out
-I won't back down -Hey, I…
I had written Billy Napier off completely this season.
I thought they were done.
They proved me wrong.
All the talk, all the "dead man walking,"
all the, "Billy Napier is done, stick a fork in him,"
all of that disappeared.
Now Lagway shifts back.
Throws left, toward the end zone.
Badger's got it!
Florida beats LSU.
A win for Billy Napier over a top-25 opponent.
The last few weeks of the season for me
was one of the greatest transformations I've ever seen.
Lagway throws, far side of the end zone. He's got his man.
Florida upsets ninth-ranked Ole Miss.
Lagway lobs it, left side.
Touchdown, Gators!
The Gators, they're on a roll here.
I don't know that we would've been able to do that
with a lesser leader and competitor than Graham Mertz.
For the Gators, a chance to win four in a row.
He didn't turn it off, like we've seen a lot of players do.
Hope and belief are powerful.
Man, what a blessing to be associated with that group of young men.
Somewhere along the way, we figured it out.
You know, we started to realize we can play with anybody.
What are you excited about, like, your future?
I'm just ready to-- Just, like, something new.
'Cause, like, I've been in college for six years.
This game, you're evaluating this physical skill set,
but you're also evaluating the human element to this game,
and especially at the quarterback position.
The variables that contribute to winning and losing is leadership.
That's the key.
Graham, how you doing? Coach Ryans here with the Texans.
We're gonna put the pick in here, make you a Houston Texan, man.
-How's that sound? -Let's do it.
I meant everything I said, man. Let's do it.
We're fired up to have you, man.
I appreciate that, a lot.
Coach Napier, he's a great leader.
Through all the ups and downs, he's been the same exact guy.
Steady, consistent.
Won't back down…
Looking back at it, probably in 20 years,
I'll be like, "That was the time of my life that I needed the most."
How to deal with success, how to deal with failure.
Hey, I…
I'm forever grateful for my time there
because it helped me grow into the person I always wanted to be.
The Houston Texans select Graham Mertz.
The Vanderbilt Commodores and Alabama Crimson Tide set to do battle.
Vanderbilt has always been viewed as the doormat of the SEC.
Let's go! Get lined up!
I came here to be the savior of this program.
Let's go!
Alabama, in this game, is a 23-point favorite.
I understand it's Alabama, but they gotta see me too.
You tell me I can't do it, I'll do it in front of your face.
Quite frankly, this matchup makes David and Goliath look like a fair fight.
Don't ever, ever, ever forget who the fuck you are!
At some point in these games,
you're gonna have to take risks if you wanna win,
where you choose to be courageous.
One first down wins the game! ous.