What to make of Mark Stoops’ latest comments on QB competition, Cutter Boley
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Zach Calzada remains the likely starter despite Cutter Boley’s strong scrimmage.
- Kentucky coaches amplify QB competition to boost preparation and engagement.
- Stoops expected to name Calzada starter Monday, but Boley speculation persists.
Mark Stoops apparently wants you to know he has not named a starting quarterback for the 2025 season.
Considering Incarnate Word transfer Zach Calzada has taken the vast majority of first-team reps throughout preseason camp and clearly was recruited to Kentucky with the plan to start in his sixth and final college season, the assumption has long been that the Wildcats had a preseason quarterback competition in name only.
But following a strong performance by backup Cutter Boley against the second-team defense in the team’s final preseason scrimmage Saturday, Stoops made a likely calculated public assessment of the position in a question-and-answer session with radio play-by-play man Tom Leach at the annual kickoff luncheon hosted by the Louisville chapter of UK’s alumni association Monday.
“(Calzada) is a big guy,” Stoops said. “He can make all the throws. He has a strong arm. He’s in a battle with Cutter Boley.
“I think Cutter is a guy that’s a redshirt freshman that we all anticipate (is) the future of this program. When that happens, I don’t know. … I felt like Zach was having some really good practices and kind of separating, and then all of the sudden Cutter comes out last Saturday and has a remarkable scrimmage and has looked as comfortable as he’s looked since he’s been here with really putting it all together.”
So, has the state of the quarterback battle actually changed?
Unlikely.
Offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan followed Stoops’ lead by telling reporters after Tuesday’s practice that the evaluation of the position is ongoing. Like Stoops, Hamdan praised Boley’s progress since a four-game cameo as a freshman last season.
“Taking it one day at a time,” Hamdan said. “We’re fortunate both these guys are here. Both of them are going to have to win football games for us when we look at the history of this conference and taking it one step at a time.”
Even after Boley’s strong showing in Saturday’s scrimmage, Calzada has continued to take the vast majority of the first-team reps in practice this week.
It would be a massive surprise if he is not the starter in the 2025 season opener against Toledo next week.
But there are reasons for the coaching staff to continue to hype a quarterback competition publicly.
A Kentucky team coming off a 4-8 season cannot afford to overlook a Toledo team picked to win the Mid-American conference. Perhaps there is a marginal advantage to be gained by forcing Toledo coaches to prepare for multiple quarterbacks as long as possible.
Even if he does start the opener as assumed, Calzada is no sure bet to succeed against SEC competition after thriving for two years at the FCS level in a spread offense, so keeping Boley engaged is essential to creating contingency plans for either struggles or injury from Calzada.
There is likely a benefit in reminding Calzada that he can be replaced as well.
“From a quarterback standpoint, the learning of the lesson of, the night before, the morning before, getting yourself ready for a game — never too high, never too low — certainly showed up (in the scrimmage),” Hamdan said. “Was pleased really with the execution, particularly with the twos. Thought they moved the ball extremely well up and down the field. Thought there were missed opportunities early with the ones, but was excited to see them battle back as the scrimmage continued on.”
Avoiding a similar sluggish start against Toledo, providing the Rockets with more confidence to pull off the upset, will be important. A week two matchup against Ole Miss means there is little time to ease into the season either.
If Calzada and the rest of the first-team offense did not prepare the way coaches hoped for the scrimmage, going public with the praise of Boley’s progress offers a convenient reminder that competition exists at every position.
One scenario that does not appear to be on the table is Hamdan playing both Calzada and Boley early in the season as he did with quarterbacks Brock Vandagriff and Gavin Wimsatt at Kentucky last year and quarterbacks Taylen Green and Maddux Madsen at Boise State in 2024.
“Both of those scenarios were a little bit more of the athletic factor that both Gavin presented and with Taylen Green and Maddux at Boise,” Hamdan said. “I think we’re in a situation where we need to get the one guy as comfortable as he can get with who he’s playing with.
“But I’m going to keep saying that we feel very confident about both those guys doing a nice job.”
For his part, Boley told reporters Tuesday he plans to continue to prepare as if he is going to be the starter so whenever he is needed this season he will be ready to lead the offense. A week earlier, after Kentucky’s first preseason scrimmage, Calzada said he was focused on becoming a better game manager and letting big plays come to him in the flow of the offense.
Expect Stoops to officially name his starting quarterback Monday with the release of the first depth chart of the season.
Calzada’s name is almost certain to be listed first that day, but Stoops has ensured the speculation about Boley, a former four-star recruit and Lexington Christian Academy star, is not going away even with that announcement.
“We all saw flashes in games and in practice with (Boley’s) ability, with his arm, but putting it all together and really having that comfort level and command of the offense takes some time,” Stoops said. “He’s getting very comfortable, and he’s making big gains.”