Marrow: "Will Levis has one of the strongest arms I've been around"

Will Levis was a hot topic at Kentucky Football practice after a new TikTok video shows the quarterback biting through a pineapple shell and eating the entire fruit and its crown from the palm of his hand like an apple.

Just kidding.

The focus is back where it belongs on Levis’ play on the football field, where Vince Marrow and a couple of Kentucky pass-catchers had some high praise of Levis’ arm following Thursday’s practice.

“I want to be very careful how I say this,” Marrow warned ahead of his comments. “I’ve been around a lot of quarterbacks, Will is one of the strongest arms I’ve been around.”

Wandale Robinson has two of the hands that will be on the receiving end of passes from that strong arm. The preseason All-SEC selection (Athlon, Phil Steele) projects to be the top target in Kentucky’s passing attack, and he too noted the zip on Levis’ throws.

“I haven’t been around many quarterbacks who can throw the ball the way he does. It’s special,” said Robinson. 

Another one of Levis’ weapons, veteran tight end Justin Rigg added, “Will has one of the best, if not the best, arms that I’ve seen through my six years here. You guys have seen videos of him throwing the ball. He really has a lot of power behind it, a lot of speed behind it, and he’s a really well-rounded player.”

The downside to Levis’ game, according to his critics, is his accuracy. However, Rigg noted Levis’ accuracy improved throughout camp as everyone got acclimated to the return to football and the installation of a new offense.

Marrow couldn’t speak to Levis’ accuracy before camp (he wasn’t on campus until the summer) but has been pleased by what he has seen, particularly down the field.

“His accuracy has been pretty good, that’s why he won the job,” said Marrow. “His deep balls are very good, the ball just comes out. You know in this league, the SEC is the closest thing to the NFL and these corners are good. So when you run an out route, that ball has to be out and, man, he’s one of the best that I’ve seen throw it.”

Levis’ Leadership

Levis’ leadership also caught the eye of Marrow and teammates throughout the locker room.

“He really got to know each player, and learn from all of us,” said Rigg. “Once he got comfortable he started to lead more and lead more and it got to the point where he became an overall leader of our offense.”

Marrow added, “Will came in the right way; won the team over; did the little things; was the first one in, last one to leave; just his leadership on the field, all guys started following him, even the defensive guys.”

Robinson spoke of a quick connection once Levis arrived.

“He was always asking to throw. He really wanted to get that chemistry going… He’s done a really, really good job trying to get us on the same page with him.”

Hear all of the comments from Robinson and Rigg below.