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Chris Low, ESPN Senior Writer
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Florida quarterback Graham Mertz suffered an injury to his lower left leg Saturday night in the third quarter of the Gators’ 23-17 overtime loss to Tennessee and was unable to return to the game.
Florida coach Billy Napier said Mertz would undergo further tests to determine the severity of the injury and his status for the remainder of the season. A redshirt senior, Mertz missed the 45-7 Week 2 win over Samford with a concussion, but returned as the Gators’ starter the last four games.
Mertz was injured after throwing a 13-yard touchdown pass to Arlis Boardingham at the 7:18 mark of the third quarter to give Florida a 10-0 lead. It was a non-contact injury as Mertz appeared to land awkwardly after releasing the pass. He backed up and immediately grabbed his leg before limping off to the sideline.
After going to the injury tent, Mertz watched the fourth quarter on crutches with a brace on his left knee. Freshman DJ Lagway, who had been rotating in some at quarterback, replaced Mertz and threw an interception on his first attempt after coming back into the game, leading to a game-tying field goal by Tennessee with 1:37 to play in the third quarter.
“Obviously, Graham played phenomenal in the game. I thought he played lights out,” Napier said. “He really prepared well and came to play. He does have an injury, a lower-body injury. … It was significant enough that he couldn’t complete the game.”
The Gators also played much of the second half without their top running back. Montrell Johnson suffered a lower-body injury on the same drive Mertz threw the touchdown pass after rushing for 85 yards on 12 carries. Freshman Jadan Baugh replaced Johnson.
Florida had the ball inside the Tennessee 20-yard line four times in the first half, but managed just a single field goal and led 3-0 at the half. The Vols, who have yet to give up more than 19 points in all six of their games this season, won for just the third time in the last 20 meetings between the schools. It’s the first time since 1990 and 1992 that Tennessee has won back-to-back games over Florida in Knoxville. The Vols won 38-33 in 2022.
“I think that we played extremely hard, played with passion, all three parts of our team,” Napier said. “Certainly the tale of the tape is the missed opportunities in the first half on offense. We had many opportunities to score points and left a ton of points out there.”