Leary's Backup QB
- Thread starter TuckyFB
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When considering UK's over/under for the season (most books have raised it from 6.5 wins to 7 wins) I think so much hinges on Leary's health. To be fair, starting quarterback health is pretty big deal for most teams most years too.
As everyone seems to be observing, the portal is starting to make it a common problem. It will soon torpedo someone's could-have-been natty.
Would hate to see that - if you put Barion Brown the QB on the field, you also take Barion Brown the receiver off the field. Surely they have better options. Anyway if Brown can throw that opens the door for some gadget plays.
I was really excited when Liam came back to be OC. First thing I imagined was a kid like Barion taking the end around and slinging it on the over pursuit. He played QB a bit in HS. Even though he was a athlete mostly back there he did throw a few passes .
Doesn't seem like Scang called anything like that the whole year. I would've let the Anthony kid do it a few times last year. If they get loose it's over.
Doesn't seem like Scang called anything like that the whole year. I would've let the Anthony kid do it a few times last year. If they get loose it's over.
The era of Wildcat QB plays is dead & buried at the University of Kentucky, no need to fear
If I am interpreting correctly, our coaches believe Destin, Sheron, and Hogan are good enough to compete for the backup job behind Devin Leary. It is clear that many people here don't believe this. They are not taking several variables into account, including the return of Coach Coen. And we are not talking about basketball here. In college football, players typically learn and improve each year as long as they are mastering the schemes and pushing themselves. For example, judging Destin's career by his first start against IA's nationally ranked defense overlooks the near certainty that he will improve as a sophomore. Of course, the winner of the competition for the backup job won't be as good or as experienced as Leary, but that's why he will be the backup rather than the starter.
We are not asking the more important question. After the 2023 season is over, Leary will graduate. Cutter Boley is coming in. In 2024, Boley will be as green as a college player can be, notwithstanding that he will get one spring practice under his belt if his plans work out. Who will be left to compete with Boley? Destin, Sheron, and Hogan will have eligibility left, but will they stick around? FWIW I do not believe Keaton will leave, since he will be a key returning player on a great defense. That does not necessarily mean Destin will stay, but he might. Hogan has already transferred once. Sheron will be the most unencumbered of the group to transfer, and I imagine that he might do that. But however you look at it, Stoops and Coen will have to come up with more QB depth in 2024 and 2025. These days, with the portal, having a headliner QB like Boley makes it very difficult to maintain quality depth.
We are not asking the more important question. After the 2023 season is over, Leary will graduate. Cutter Boley is coming in. In 2024, Boley will be as green as a college player can be, notwithstanding that he will get one spring practice under his belt if his plans work out. Who will be left to compete with Boley? Destin, Sheron, and Hogan will have eligibility left, but will they stick around? FWIW I do not believe Keaton will leave, since he will be a key returning player on a great defense. That does not necessarily mean Destin will stay, but he might. Hogan has already transferred once. Sheron will be the most unencumbered of the group to transfer, and I imagine that he might do that. But however you look at it, Stoops and Coen will have to come up with more QB depth in 2024 and 2025. These days, with the portal, having a headliner QB like Boley makes it very difficult to maintain quality depth.
And it will not be realistic to compare Barion Brown with Lynn Bowden. Barion is an excellent player, but Bowden was an All American. As a college player, Bowden was at least 25# heavier than Barion. IOW, Barion cannot do the things Bowden did. A 175# receiver cannot run the football out of the backfield like Bowden did, and would not be able to stand in the pocket against SEC edge rushers either. To put it more bluntly, he would get taken apart.
And as you say, moving Barion from the receiver room would take away one of our most important offensive weapons.
So this just isn't going to happen.
I think they hit the portal for an upper classman QB with 1 maybe 2 years left, just like they have done with Levis and Leary. That way having a super freshmen on the roaster will not be any threat, and it will also relieve pressure on Boley and allow him a year or possible two to develop.
I’ll have to see it to believe it when it comes to Kiaya Sheron, Destin Wade, or Deuce Hogan. That is for sure.
Leary, Sheron, Hogan, and Destin are the four scholarship QBs on our roster. Hogan transferred as a WO but has since received his scholarship. These are the facts. One of them will earn the backup role. That spells it out.
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The transfer, Shane Hamm, is a WO from Dayton. I did not include WOs in the discussion although Hogan is a former WO with a scholarship now.
Portal killed backup QB position. Anyone good leaves for pt. Most every team will have to just make due with what they have if a QB goes down
This is probably true. But smart OCs will make adjustments for this, just like they make adjustments for defensive innovations. Some possibilities come to mind. We could see more use of two-QB systems, to get more QBs on the field. We could see some teams recruit and gear up for a run heavy offense similar to what Eddie Gran did with Lynn Bowden. That might change logistics of the QB position for that program.
I suspect the most practical approach will be careful timing of QB recruitment. When you have a dominant jr or sr QB, that is the time to pursue a high upside freshman signee. The days of being able to sign and stack a 4 star QB in every class is probably over unless a staff is deliberately willing to use it as a pyramid system and watch more than half of them walk.
Want to add to my last post that any QB facing SEC defenses week in and week out are at risk. That will always be a concern.
He broke his leg his second year, had the great 2021, then tore his pec last year. Doesn’t mean he’ll get hurt here but it has happened two of last three seasons for him
If Leary pans out and performs well in this system and possibly gets drafted, then I don't think we will have a problem attracting High Level QB's be it through the portal or out of HS.
We already aren't having trouble. Coach Coen's return has changed the public profile for our offense. Leary was the top QB available in the portal, and Cutter Boley is one of the better hs QB prospects in the country. So we are already attracting and signing high level QBs.
The "Leary is injury prone" talking point is indeed incorrect and annoying. Watch the tape.....100 out of 100 QBs would be seriously injured if in process of throwing a D linemen runs into his passing arm from the opposite direction.
true. I think Leary's health this season will be much more depending upon the quality of protection that he gets, than some theory about his durability based on two plays.
Leary had is 2020 season ended during Game 4 after he suffered a Shoulder injury. The Pectoral Muscle injury ended his 2022 season. So Injury prone? all I know is he's had two seasons cut short. Let's just hope and pray there isn't a third.
Might be difficult to study, but an interesting subject. Would need to control for a ton of variables and likely span a ton of papers. 1) does the athlete get hurt and just walk away from the sport (would skew results); 2) would the focus be on reinjury of the same muscle groups, tendons, or body parts, or just on injuries, period; 3) are there any underlying genetic or infection-related conditions like EDS, arthritis, or others; 4) are some more susceptible to injury due to their body or to poor form that wears on the body? One can be "fixed"; 5) how much does conditioning factor into injury? If poor conditioning = injury prone, then that's fixable.
There're a ton more, but this is just me spitballing. I think there's a lot to be said for EDS factoring into serious, recurrent, and persistent tendon injuries. Aside from that, I figure it's a lot of coach speak and anecdotal evidence.
Reports are Leary looked very good this week at the Manning Passing Academy
I saw that. Coach Coen is heavily invested in him. Which circles back around to one of the most interesting aspects of our football season. With all these inbound transfers, how effective will our OL be in pass protection? Big issue.
I think they've assembled the necessary pieces to have at least an upper half O line, it just depends on how well they can come together and work as a unit.
There is the key to how good this season will/can be. This could be Stoops best team, if the O-Line can jell into a solid unit we can have a big year. The schedule is tougher than the last couple of years but if we can find our identity in the first 5 games and avoid injury to key people the last half of the season could be interesting.
Certainly does. No question. Marques Cox and Tanner Bowles were here for spring practice. But Ben Christman and Courtland Ford weren't. Jaden Burton is moving to a new position. Eli Cox and Kenneth Horsey are moving back to their former positions, but a year has passed for them.
So while four OL starters are returning, three are changing positions and one other is not even on track to start in the fall. If Courtland Ford becomes a starter, he will have to learn the system and become familiar with his teammates without the benefit of spring practice. It can be done, but it is not going to be a simple transition.
The other side of this coin is that Ball St, EKU, and Akron probably won't be able to exploit this vulnerability. And by the time those three games have been played, our 2023 OL should have some chemistry for the trip to Vandy. Let's hope there are no injuries.