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Devin Leary can help Kentucky football win 10 games in 2023

By Mat Mlodzinski

CLEMSON, SOUTH CAROLINA - OCTOBER 01: Devin Leary #13 of the North Carolina State Wolfpack looks for a pass in the second quarter against the Clemson Tigers at Memorial Stadium on October 01, 2022 in Clemson, South Carolina. (Photo by Eakin Howard/Getty Images)
CLEMSON, SOUTH CAROLINA - OCTOBER 01: Devin Leary #13 of the North Carolina State Wolfpack looks for a pass in the second quarter against the Clemson Tigers at Memorial Stadium on October 01, 2022 in Clemson, South Carolina. (Photo by Eakin Howard/Getty Images) /
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Kentucky football has been on the rise for the better part of the last decade, finishing over .500 in 6 of the last 10 years. The Wildcats reached the 10-win plateau in 2018 and 2021 but fell back to a 7-6 showing last season.

A new season will bring new challenges, but the 2023 edition of Kentucky football seems ready to take those challenges in stride.

The most exciting part of the upcoming season is the quarterback situation. It isn’t often that a team can replace a QB picked in the second round of the NFL Draft with another player nearly as skilled. But that’s just what’s on Mark Stoops’ plate, as Devin Leary slides in to fill Will Levis’s shoes.

The lack of pressure placed on Devin Leary could help Kentucky football play much better than the expectations placed on them.

If you follow college football, you know the name Devin Leary. He’s amassed almost 7,000 career passing yards, throwing 62 touchdowns to just 16 interceptions. The former NC State Wolfpack QB is transitioning to the SEC, but with less hype than you may think.

That’s largely thanks to an injury Leary sustained in 2022. Leary suffered a torn pectoral muscle in NC State’s win over Florida State on Oct. 8. He should be 100% to start the season,  but any time a football player goes through a season-ending injury, doubt will creep in.

I’m here to tell you that doubt is unnecessary.

On the field, Leary has proved that he can handle adversity. In 2021, Leary dueled with Clemson quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei, commanding NC State to a double-overtime win over the Tigers. Leary threw two of his four TD passes in the OT periods and finished the game with a completion percentage of over 70%.

That wasn’t the only example of Leary’s toughness on the field. In the last game of the season, he led a 4th quarter comeback with the Wolfpack down nine points against UNC with 2:12 to go, ultimately winning 34-30. Despite only completing 19-of-30 passes, he stepped up in the biggest moments, delivering two touchdown strikes to Emeka Emezie in a 26-second span.

Of course, those are just two examples of Leary’s on-the-field toughness in pressure situations, and not how he is at coming back from a major injury. Albeit, Kentucky football fans should still be excited to have a player of his capability flying under the radar because of an injury.

But it’s not the only reason Leary can command the Cats to a 10-win season.

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