Ad Disclosure
DJ Lagway featured in new Gatorade ad narrated by Michael Jordan
By Andrew Olson
Published:
DJ Lagway is in a Gatorade commercial before recording his first statistic as a Florida Gator.
The UF freshman quarterback is featured alongside WNBA No. 1 pick and Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark, Las Vegas Ace center A’ja Wilson, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen, American Olympic hurdler Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and Boston Celtics guard Jayson Tatum.
The new ad, titled “It Hasn’t Changed” revives the sports drink’s popular tagline “Is It In You?” from the 1990s and early 2000s. The “Is It In You?” ads memorably featured Michael Jordan dripping Gatorade-colored sweat. Jordan is back as the narrator of the new ad, part of what Gatorade is calling its “largest campaign in brand history.”
“It Hasn’t Changed” runs for 60 seconds. Lagway is featured in his Willis Wildkats uniform.
The Florida freshman was named the Gatorade 2023-2024 National Football Player of the Year. As a senior, Lagway passed for 4,604 yards and a Texas 6A record 58 touchdowns, posting a 72.1 completion percentage in the process. A dual-threat quarterback, Lagway also led his team in rushing yards (957) and touchdowns (16).
Lagway committed to Florida on Dec. 7, 2022.He finished the 2024 recruiting cycle with a rating of 5-stars, the No. 1 quarterback and No. 3 player overall on the 247Sports Composite. There was some worry on the first day of the Early Signing Period that Florida’s 5-7 season might have scared Lagway off from playing for Billy Napier, but the prized prospect signed with UF and enrolled for the January semester in Gainesville.
GATOR-ade @DerekLagway x @Gatorade#GoGators pic.twitter.com/BqR8tjDjbs
— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) May 29, 2024
Early hype for Lagway
A lot of hype comes with a 5-star recruiting rating, especially for a quarterback. Florida fans are among the most quarterback-crazy, as they walk by the statues of three Heisman-winning QBs to enter the stadium.
Officially, Lagway hasn’t taken a snap yet for the Gators. His career numbers are all 0s, but fans have gotten to see Lagway through touchdowns in The Swamp.
While incumbent starter Graham Mertz is coming off a 2023 season in which he threw for 2,903 yards, 20 touchdowns and 3 interceptions at a rate of 72.9% complete, Lagway was the top draw of Florida’s 2024 spring game.
The freshman delivered on the hype. Lagway threw for 173 yards, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception, with 5 completions of 20 yards or more.
Mentioned #Gators WR Aidan Mizell earlier in spring as a player to keep an eye on. He and DJ Lagway scored the first TD of the spring game.pic.twitter.com/1FlRoy0Ou1
— Zach Goodall (@zach_goodall) April 13, 2024
Lagway looks to have a bright future in orange and blue. In the NIL age, the new Gatorade ad could be the start of a long endorsement relationship.
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
