Joey Gatewood will enter the transfer portal

Joey Gatewood will leave the University of Kentucky after the quarterback was beat out by Will Levis in the Wildcats’ preseason competition. After breaking the news to all three quarterbacks at once, Stoops met with Gatewood individually.

“I told him how much I appreciated how hard he’s worked,” Stoops said Sunday evening. “I know he’s been through this before so I knew it would be especially tough, a tough decision, not what he wanted to hear. We had that discussion, had a good talk. He handled it completely professionally. I really appreciate him and at that point he informed me he thought it would be in his best interest to enter his name into the portal.”

Gatewood will return to the transfer portal just a little more than 18 months after he transferred from Auburn to Kentucky. He has left the team and will search for a new college football home immediately. Gatewood will not be eligible to play for another school in the fall of 2021 after already using his one-time waiver. He intends to compete and contribute to a Power Five football team.

Ranked as the No. 1 athlete in the 2018 recruiting class, the Jacksonville native played in seven games last year for the Wildcats, earning his first career start against Georgia. In the 14-3 loss at Kroger Field he completed 15-of-of-25 passes for 91 yards. Gatewood completed just 48.5% of his 35 passes as a Wildcat and rushed for 235 yards in his single season in Lexington.

Without Gatewood in the picture, Beau Allen will serve as Will Levis’ backup.