Devin Leary's poise, lunchpail approach contagious in Kentucky locker room

Devin Leary said to open fall camp he had no interest in being a ‘super rah-rah guy’ when he first arrived at Kentucky. The NC State transfer wasn’t going to demand respect in the locker room simply because he was the new QB1 on the block. He knew it’d have to earn it organically.

“I think that was the biggest thing, just making sure that every single day they know what to expect out of Devin Leary,” he said. “I’m just going to be myself every day.”

When you’ve racked up 6,807 career passing yards and 62 touchdowns over four seasons of Power Five college football, there really isn’t much more to say. The results speak for themselves. What Leary did at NC State clearly worked, and if it ain’t broke, why fix it?

“I mean, we’ve got Devin Leary,” senior running back Ray Davis said. “If he’s throwing the ball, we’re going to be successful.”

Leary’s poise and confidence

The fifth-year senior showed up, put his head down and immediately went to work. And as hoped, the respect was quickly earned. Teammates admired his ability to make plays and quickly move past mistakes — the few he does make.

“I mean, just look at him,” Davis said. “He’s got the swag and he’s got the confidence. Always poised, nothing shakes him. Every time he steps on that field, he’s always confident in everything he does. Even if he does mess up, it’s always a next-play mentality.

“That’s a great thing to have in a quarterback who is a leader and understands that not everything is going to be perfect. At the end of the day, if you continue to do what you’ve got to do, control what you can control, you’re going to become successful.”

A contagious lunchpail approach

Leary’s presence is obviously felt within the offense, that unit going as he goes. But it’s not just limited to those 11 starters and their reserves. His lead-by-example approach has bled into the rest of the locker room, a contagious mindset even extending to the coaching staff.

No excuses. Just work. Execute and control the controllables. Everything else will sort itself out.

“It rubs off on everybody on the team,” Davis added. “Not just the offense, but I think the defense, special teams and even the coaches. When they see a guy who takes care of his stuff and comes in, puts his hard hat on, grabs his lunch pail, goes to work — he doesn’t give any excuses.

“That’s one thing I love about him and that’s one thing I definitely learned from him. Just being composed and not making any excuses, going out there and executing what you’ve got to do.”

“We’re a brotherhood.”

That mindset has led to a togetherness on and off the field. There is a buy-in with this roster that is tangible, a common goal of winning football games and making a run in the SEC this fall. Like Leary avoiding superficial leadership when he arrived on campus, you can’t fake chemistry and cohesion. It’s a group that sticks together or doesn’t.

With just 10 days until the start of the regular season, Davis is confident about where things stand in that regard.

“Just the camaraderie with the guys. We spend a lot of time together — being in the weight room, being in the film room, eating a lot and just being on the field,” he said. “I think that’s just been the biggest difference, having our camaraderie and building that chemistry, it translating to the field.

“It’s not shallow words when we say we’re a brotherhood, a band of brothers. It is real. It’s 100% real.”