GAINESVILLE — Despite a drizzling rain, a line of cars filled with famished patrons, some surely Florida football fans, idled on the grass, waiting for one thing: a DJ Lagway burger and a taste of NIL success.
DJ’s Cast Iron Burgers has evolved into a staple of the Gainesville community while serving as another example of the ever-expanding footprint of the Gators star quarterback.
Some deals are more glamorous and far-reaching than others. Lagway appeared in a T-Mobile commercial with NFL stars Patrick Mahomes and Rob Gronkowski, and he starred on the cover of the video game, EA Sports College Football 26 Deluxe Edition.
He’s also clinched partnerships with Beats by Dre headphones, Gatorade, Mercedes and Lamborghini.
“It’s really unbelievable, all the opportunities that he’s getting,” his father, Derek Sr., told the Orlando Sentinel Saturday night at the Swamp. “I give it all to God because I don’t see everybody getting those deals. It’s been blessings after blessings.”
The 20-year-old’s latest NIL score, announced Friday on the eve of UF’s season-opening win against Long Island University, paired Lagway with Jordan Brand.
“It’s truly a blessing to be able to partner with such amazing brands such as Jordan,” Lagway said after a 3-touchdown night. “Without the guys on the field with me, none of that would have been possible. It’s just resources that the University of Florida provides, none of it would be possible.”
Ben Chase, Florida’s director of NIL strategy, told FloridaGators.com, Lagway is “QB1 at a top 5 brand in college football.”
But DJ’s Cast Iron Burgers hits closer to home. Co-owners, Jose Nieves, 34, and Miguel Cardona, 33, paired with Lagway, a frequent visitor of the food truck, to create a sweet and spicy burger.
The idea was first pitched offhandedly on one of Lagway’s visits as a freshman. He loved it, Cardona said. The quarterback passed on his management team’s contact information.
It officially launched Thursday for $12.99 and features angus beef, cheese, cowboy candy, charred jalapeños, a special “DJ” house sauce and a charred bun. While Cardona said he plans for the sandwich to be on the menu for at least a year, the burger adds a new flavor combination to the normal smash burgers found at the truck.
“Obviously, we’re a small startup. We didn’t really have the funds that Nike or Chipotle has to kind of sponsor him,” Cardona said. “And so we’re like, well, the only way we can sort of make this happen is we create a signature burger and, you know, basically just collaborate on that. And so, yeah, so we kind of just started working on the burger idea.”
They took part of Lagway’s original order (a three-pattie burger with mayo, bacon, cheese) and added jalapenos as a nod to the quarterback’s Texas roots, growing up in Willis, Texas.
“I’m not gonna even lie, I never had jalapenos on a burger until that one,” his dad said. “I tried it and it was delicious. It’s got a spice, but sweet, also.”
Before it was released, Nieves and Cardona tested it out with the staff before expanding it to a trial run with select customers. Cardona joked that the staff would keep coming up with reasons to make the burger.
After customers got a chance to order it, Cardona said he received positive feedback, and people started changing their orders to include the burger. When the company provided catering for UF football Aug. 23, the sophomore quarterback snagged two. His dad also quickly became a Cast Iron Burger fan himself.
“It’s an awesome burger,” he said.
Orlando Sentinel senior writer Edgar Thompson contributed to this report.