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It was no surprise with SEC Football Media Days in Nashville that Kentucky coach Mark Stoops would be asked about former UK quarterback Will Levis, the second round pick of the Tennessee Titans in the recent NFL draft.
The Titans traded up in the draft to get Levis with the second pick in the second round after he fell out of the first round with the hope he might be Ryan Tannehill’s eventual successor.
“It’s not about being the starter,” Stoops said. “It’s not about money. It’s about winning and performing for his players. That’s the biggest thing with him. He is ultra-competitive. I can promise you from what I’ve seen that he’s going to work.”
Levis was projected to possibly go in the top 10 picks of the draft but had to sit and watch the first round end with him still not drafted.
“It was obviously a very difficult situation to sit through and be with him and just try to support him,” Stoops said at SEC Media Days. “And really just wanted him to know that we were there for him and support him. He has an absolutely tremendous family that he’s very close to that was right there with him. We were just part of that support system, and it was tough to go through.
“But Will, he’ll come out of the other side. That was just a little blip on the radar. Went to a great organization with a great head coach that I have a lot of respect for right here in this city, and I think it fits the mentality that Will is comfortable with.”
Stoops has not lost faith in what Levis can do in the NFL.
“I think he will do very well and have a long NFL career and look back on that and say, it was a blip on the radar. Not fun. Not fun for anybody to go through that, but he went to a good team early in the second round, and he will be a very successful quarterback,” Stoops said.
“There’s a pretty good one (quarterback) by the name of Jalen Hurts. He maybe didn’t have to sit there through the draft, but he went in later rounds, second or third, if I’m not mistaken, and look at the great career he’s had so far and will continue to have.
“For Will, he just has to stay the course and stay away from provin all that and just play ball because he’s a heck of a player. He’s very competitive, and he wants to win for his organization. And if he sticks to that, he’ll be successful.”
Former Kentucky teammates who were with Stoops in Nashville praised Levis as well.
“You can tell when a dude really loves the game of football (or) he’s just out there acting. And I feel like Will never acted. He always really cared about the game. He wanted everything on point, and to be on point, he was always in the building,” UK defensive lineman Octavious Oxendine said.
“He had a lot of fun with it (on social media),” Cox said, “and I think people misconstrued that to be something different than it was. … He’s a really down-to-earth guy.”
