Liam Coen on Devin Leary: "If we can keep him upright, we've got a chance"

Kentucky’s new quarterback Devin Leary still feels like a bit of a mystery to fans since transferring in from NC State in January. Following in the footsteps of Will Levis — a 6’4″ NFL prototype whose play on the field was matched only by his social media presence off it — can’t be easy, but both Mark Stoops and Liam Coen are confident that Leary is forging his own path under center. Today, both raved about his leadership, with Coen sharing a story that speaks to Leary’s personality and work ethic.

“Devin, he’s got a great way about him. He just has a really nice way of connecting with people, just so naturally, and he’s a really high football IQ kid. He loves the game, he studies the game.

“Like, last night I called him on my way home and he was watching the 2017 or 2016 LA Rams Hard Knocks. Just randomly. How did you come to that? ‘I just ended up coming across it.’ He’s just — he’s all ball but extremely relatable to his peers, while also his coaches. And also he’s talented. He’s talented, so it makes it fun to really work with somebody like that.”

“Devin is a very natural leader,” Mark Stoops added. “He doesn’t overdo it. He still wants to work and take care of his own backyard, ultimately finding his voice and finding that leadership role to whatever level it goes to. It will happen authentically in time.”

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Leary “throwing the ball even better than he did this spring”

Leary’s talent should speak for itself, but his senior season at NC State was cut short due to a torn pectoral muscle. During his junior season, Leary broke Phillip Rivers’ Wolfpack record for passing touchdowns in a single season, throwing for 35 scores to only five interceptions at a 65.7% completion rate. Over four seasons at NC State, he completed 568-of-944 passes for 62 touchdowns and 6,807 career passing yards. Prior to getting injured in 2022, Leary led NC State to a 5-1 record and a top-15 ranking in the national polls.

Leary worked his way back from the injury in time to practice with Kentucky this spring. Coen said the determination he showed to get back to full strength is further proof of his drive to succeed.

“He wasn’t even really supposed to be throwing when the doctor said, ‘Hey, when we’re going to do this thing, we don’t even know when you’re going to be able to throw again.’ And it just, he worked so tirelessly to get to the point that he got to and he’s throwing the ball even better than he did this spring and he feels extremely strong.

“He’s had a couple of freak injuries throughout his career. I don’t think he’s a soft-tissue injury-prone kid. I just think he’s had some unfortunate issues that have come up that have really driven him to become the player that he is.”

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Devin Leary’s ability to scramble

With his size and scrambling ability, Will Levis was able to get Kentucky first downs with his legs, especially in his junior season. At 6’1″, 217 lbs, Leary is smaller than Levis and not known as a scrambler, with only five rushing touchdowns in his four-year career to Levis’ 17. That said, Coen believes if Leary can escape the pocket and get some space, he can make plays happen with his arm.

“The nice thing about Devin is that when he does move in the pocket or escape out of the pocket, he tries to do a really good job of remaining a passer,” Coen said. “So, he’s got his eyes down the field. I think you’ll see when he does escape and move, being able to keep our eligibles alive, to be able to find guys on the move whereas Will, when he would escape a lot of times I mean, he was rolling and there were some great plays that he made.

“He’s just a quarterback,” Coen added. “You know, I mean, he’s not — he’ll tell you he’s not the best runner in the world in terms of lowering his shoulder but I think he can go and get us a couple of first downs. But I believe some of the plays that he’ll make outside of the pocket will be more with his arm.”

Of course, any talk of Leary scrambling is another reminder that his — and ultimately, Kentucky’s — success will depend on the offensive line. The staff brought in five transfers to rebuild the Big Blue Wall after a disappointing 2022 season. Coen said it’s early, but he feels good about the direction of the line this season, and that setting them up for success by simplifying schemes has been a big focus of camp thus far. However, this line about Leary looms large as we prepare for the 2023 season.

“If we can keep him upright, we’ve got a chance.”