Options are emerging if Kentucky wants to look at QB again in transfer portal

Devin Leary is the clear QB1 for Kentucky. The program added the NC State transfer for a reason. Liam Coen‘s second offense in Lexington will go as far as the super senior from New Jersey takes them.

However, you can’t really talk about Leary’s potential without addressing the injury history. Twice in the last three seasons, the pocket passer has suffered two season-ending injuries that caused him to miss 14 games over the last three years in the ACC. Kentucky must have a plan in place that can win football games if Leary has another injury.

Currently, the Wildcats have only four scholarship quarterbacks on the roster. Deuce Hogan, Kaiya Sheron, and Destin Wade all have limited playing experience against power conference competition. The recruitment of in-state prospect Cutter Boley and 2025 blue-chipper Ryan Montgomery are heating up, but Kentucky could benefit from adding another quarterback in this offseason.

On Tuesday, two intriguing potential names entered the transfer portal. KSR decided to build a QB big board in case Kentucky decided to go after one of the free agent quarterbacks with multiple years of eligibility remaining.

Logan Smothers (Nebraska)

• 6-2, 190, RJr.
• 3 years of eligibility remaining
• 176 snaps (1 start), 413 passing yards (64.7 completion rate, 8.1 yards per attempt), 174 non-sack rushing yards (3.8 yards per rush), 2 total touchdowns

Logan Smothers was a top-500 recruit in the class of 2020 out of Muscle Shoals (Ala.) High in North Alabama. In Scott Frost‘s second full recruiting class at Nebraska, the four-star recruit became the Huskers’ QB.

After taking a redshirt season in 2020, Smothers earned a start in the season finale in 2021 against Iowa and played well (9.0 yards per attempt on 22 passes) against a top-15 defense. The quarterback settled into a backup role as a redshirt sophomore before a coaching change occurred in Lincoln. Smothers missed spring practice due to offseason shoulder surgery and got passed on the depth chart as head coach Matt Rhule and offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield rebuild the roster.

Smothers is a likely Group of Five starter who could be sold on being a Power Five backup somewhere before competing for a starting spot in 2023. The quarterback could use another transfer as a graduate once the necessary classroom work is completed.

Brady Allen (Purdue)

Brady Allen is a former top-150 recruit in the class of 2022 who was one of Jeff Brohm‘s biggest recruiting wins at Purdue. On3 was very high on the quarterback.

Allen took a redshirt season during his first year in West Lafayette and then Brohm’s coaching staff left for Louisville. Purdue would hire Ryan Walters to run the Big Ten West program, but Allen would enter the transfer portal in December and took a visit to Ole Miss before deciding to withdraw.

Allen re-entered the portal on Tuesday. With multiple years of eligibility remaining, Allen will likely look to stay in the Power Five and could be open to being a backup in 2023 in a place where a starting job could up for grabs in 2024.