Mark Stoops thinks Kentucky "hit a home run" with Devin Leary; "He's a Dude"

Kentucky added several talented players to its 2023 roster this week, but none are as significant as Devin Leary. The former NC State quarterback announced he is transferring to Kentucky yesterday afternoon, filling the very big void left by Will Levis. Leary was the top quarterback available in the transfer portal and has one season of eligibility remaining. Mark Stoops told reporters today that any program that needed a quarterback went after Leary, making his decision to come to Kentucky even more monumental.

“I know our Kentucky Football team got better today with the addition of the nucleolus of our guys from high school and obviously the transfers, which are headlined by Devin Leary, a guy that was highly sought-after,” Stoops said to start his Signing Day press conference. “Anybody that was in the quarterback market — and I mean anybody and everybody that was in the quarterback market — was after him, so we really feel like we hit a home run with him.”

Stoops made a point to say that he believes in Kentucky’s current quarterback room, which includes Kaiya Sheron, Deuce Hogan, and Destin Wade — the latter of which is expected to play significant minutes in the Music City Bowl. However, Leary gives Kentucky’s young playmakers like Barion Brown and Dane Key the best chance for immediate success.

“Again, I’ve told you I feel confident with the quarterbacks that we have on campus, but this gives you a one-year transfer free agent, if you will, to come in for a year and really bridge that gap and let our guys continue to grow. The quarterbacks that we have on campus, I’m excited to watch them play in this game [the Music City Bowl]. They really worked hard and they’re doing some good things and I’m excited to watch them. But with Devin, it brings in a proven guy with a lot of snaps under his belt. With the playmakers that we have in place, that’s a really big get for us.”

Leary was voted Preseason ACC Player of the Year this past summer after throwing for 3,433 yards, 35 touchdowns, and only five interceptions in 2021. Unfortunately, his junior season was cut short when he tore his right pectoral muscle six games in, his second season-ending injury in three years. Stoops said he expects Leary and fellow transfer Marques Cox, who also suffered a season-ending injury, to participate in spring practice.

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“He’s just one of those guys. He’s a dude.”

Stoops wants Leary to forge his own path at Kentucky, so was therefore hesitant to compare him to Levis, a projected first-round NFL Draft pick. However, he did say Leary’s experience gave the staff plenty to evaluate on tape, which helped them zero in on bringing him to Lexington.

“It’s really not fair to compare people. I mean, you have two talented players, two very good players. Different situations, the way they came in, with Will coming in as primarily used as a running quarterback and not really seeing him throw that much. Will came in and really proved himself that first year. With Devin, he has quite a few more snaps on tape, so much different in that aspect. Devin has clearly more experience and more snaps under his belt. So they’re already different in that area. They’re both very good players and very talented in their own right.”

One trait that Stoops said Leary and Levis share is leadership.

“I think you can see [him becoming a leader] and you can see it happening very easily. And again, much like Will, authentic. Not forced. He’s just one of those guys — he’s a dude. He’s one of the guys that very, very much, you could see him being a great fit.”

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Stoops on Leary’s decision process

Once he entered the transfer portal, Leary shot to the top of Kentucky’s wish list at quarterback. The Cats also looked at Wisconsin transfer Graham Mertz, who ended up at Florida. Unlike Mertz, Leary only has one season of eligibility remaining, which Stoops said he actually prefers because it shows his current quarterback room that there’s still a future for them in Lexington.

“We had a lot of guys interested and a couple of things. I think, number one, with Devin having one year, it kind of shows to the quarterbacks that you have on campus that we believe in you, that you’re going to have a bright future.

“And with Devin, with the quarterback position, sometimes you’re splitting hairs, whether it’s your system or what’s going on, there are some very talented guys out there. We were fortunate that so many were interested in us. And you know, for myself even that gets to be a little bit of an awkward situation because I have such respect for those guys. And there are so many really good players and they had a really high interest in us. You had to juggle that.”

After visiting Kentucky, Leary also made a trip to Auburn. Even though Stoops said the staff felt good about their chances, he admitted that when it was finally official that Leary was coming to Lexington, he exhaled.

“How did it feel? Well, it felt really good. I felt relieved. We felt confident. You know that he was high on us, but he still had another visit to make.”

“He was very strong. He was very much, as I’ve mentioned some different guys before, I mentioned that with Josh Paschal. Very much like, what he said, he did. The process that he went through, he followed through to a T. Very thorough and I respect that and I liked the way he went through it. You want to go on the visit, want to go home, want to sit down and look his parents in the eye to have a conversation, and then call me, and that’s exactly what he did. And so I always have a great appreciation for people as detailed and as thorough and very much process-orientated as he is. He’s already on football, I mean he’s getting after it, so he’s the type of guy you’re looking for.”