Bio Blast: Devin Leary
Kentucky is entering a critical offseason under head coach Mark Stoops. We’ve seen multiple new hires, and the early signing period begins in just over a week. Some very important decisions are being made at the Joe Craft Football Training Facility.
The most important one could be what Stoops and the offensive coaching staff decide to do at quarterback.
Early in the offseason, Wisconsin transfer Graham Mertz emerged as an option. However, the former top-100 recruit just visited Florida. Meanwhile, Kentucky has worked quietly to get one of the top transfer options to campus.
NC State transfer Devin Leary will be visiting Kentucky this week as the Wildcats look to close one of the top options in the transfer portal. Now feels like a good time to start digging into the potential new QB1 in Lexington if a recruiting win occurs.
Proven production
Devin Leary was a four-star recruiting win for Dave Doeren’s NC State program out of Sicklerville (N.J.) Timber Creek in the class of 2018. The top-350 prospect finished his prep career as New Jersey’s all-time leader in passing yards (9,672) and passing touchdowns (117).
Leary would become a starter in the last five games in 2019 as a redshirt freshman at NC State. From there, he became one of the best quarterbacks in the ACC.
Leary complied 26 career starts during his time in Raleigh with the last three seasons coming under offensive coordinator Tim Beck. During that run with Beck — who was just named head coach at Coastal Carolina — the 6-1 quarterback tossed for 54 touchdowns in 21 games completing over 60 percent of his passes each year.
The numbers dipped in 2022 (6.6 yards per attempt, 41.3 % success rate, 2.1% interception rate, 130.9 QB rating, 15% explosive pass rate), but NC State had a woeful rushing attack (No. 90 in rush success rate, No. 122 in yards per rush, and No. 113 in rush EPA). However, the good from the first two years outweigh the bad.
Leary posted over eight yards per attempt in both 2020 and 2021 leading the Wolfpack to a 12-3 record while scoring 33.1 points per game. Add in the six starts in 2022, and Leary was 17-4 as a starter under Beck with each loss occurring in true road games against Power Five teams with winning records.
Throughout his collegiate career, Leary has never had the benefit of a good rushing attack along with limited star power at wideout. However, the QB has produced when on the field. There is a very high floor with the super senior.
KSR’s Scouting Report
Since the offseason started, we’ve been pumping out transfer portal content here at KSR. A recurring post has been our QB Transfer Big Board. We’ve been scouting some of the potential targets for Kentucky, and here’s what we discovered about Devin Leary after digging into the tape and looking at his statistical profile.
— Devin Leary is a rhythm passer that posted a ridiculous TD/INT ratio (35/5) in 2021. The pocket quarterback is a very good processor that makes quick decisions and gets the ball out on time within the structure of offensive coordinator Tim Beck’s scheme. Leary’s quick release produces touch on the football as the quarterback has shown the ability to layer throws between defenders. However, durability is a huge concern as Leary has been knocked out for the season in 2020 and 2022. Driving the ball on vertical concepts can be an issue due to a lack of throwing power, but consistent touch and ball placement are shown on deep throws.
Limited run threat
When watching Devin Leary on tape, this is a quarterback that is not a statue. The NC State transfer shows good pocket movement skills and can extend the plays thanks to good footwork. However, this is not a true rushing threat.
Leary has played over 1,800 snaps in his college career and has only run the ball 42 times. The veteran quarterback had a career-high 18 non-sack rush attempts in 2021. Leary averages 5.9 yards per rush and has scored five touchdowns on the ground, but most of that work has come via scramble.
This is not a quarterback that will be used in the designed run game, but there is enough athleticism to pick up some yardage when it’s available.
Durability is a major concern
You cannot properly project Devin Leary’s potential fit at a new program without bringing up the injury history. This is a quarterback that has missed at least half of a regular season twice in the last three seasons.
After a hot three-game run in 2020, Leary was lost for the year when the quarterback suffered a fractured fibula against Duke as a redshirt sophomore. Two years later, Leary suffered a torn pectoral muscle that knocked him out for the season after six games in 2022 as a redshirt senior.
If Leary is your QB1, pass protection will be vital, and the backup QB situation needs to be in a good place.
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