The Courier-Journal (Louisville)
Quarterback Wade enters transfer portal
LEXINGTON — Destin Wade reportedly is a one-and-done at Kentucky. He played in only one game in two seasons with the Wildcats. And now he’s moving on.
Wade, a redshirt freshman quarterback, whose only game played was last season’s Music City Bowl, will enter the transfer portal, according to multiple reports Monday.
A Tennessee native, Wade was the Wildcats’ third-string QB this fall behind starter Devin Leary and backup Kaiya Sheron.
As of Monday evening, Wade is one of 11 UK players to enter the transfer portal since the regular season ended.
Here are some things to know about the now-former Wildcat signal caller:
Destin Wade’s first college game was in the postseason
When Will Levis decided to sit out last season’s Music City Bowl to begin preparing for the NFL Draft, Wade got the starting nod against Iowa.
It marked Wade’s first-ever college game — and doubled as a homecoming, as the Tennessee native grew up less than 40 miles away from Nissan Stadium in Nashville, annual host of the Music City Bowl.
Going up against the Hawkeyes’ vaunted defense, however, the true freshman struggled, completing barely 50% of his passes (16 for 30, with two interceptions and no touchdowns) and failing to break the 100-yard mark (ending with 98) as the Wildcats lost 21-0.
Wade’s mistakes were costly: Iowa returned both of his interceptions for touchdowns.
Those miscues were magnified in a contest in which the Hawkeyes’ offense only managed one score of its own.
“Destin was put in a tough situation today,” Kentucky coach Mark Stoops said after the loss.
“So there will be a lot of armchair quarterbacks who sit back and want to critique this guy. But I tell you right now, let them go back there and play against that defense and see how easy that is. It’s a tough row to hoe.”
While Wade was critical of his performance — and what he viewed as a lack of leadership on his part — following the shutout defeat, Stoops came to the freshman’s defense.
“We talked about it all week: It’s not just on the quarterback or any one player,” Stoops said. “We needed to do some good things around him, and I think there were certain areas where we fell short. It’s not a time to point fingers. We all accept it, but we know we’re going to grow from this. And I know (Wade) will grow from this.”
Destin Wade was one of the best high school football players in Tennessee
Wade put Summit High in position to capture state titles in each of his three seasons as starting quarterback of the school in Spring Hill, Tennessee. Summit High combined to go 40-5 in that span, winning the state title in 2020.
He won Tennessee’s “Mr. Football” award for Division I, Class 6A — the largest classification in Tennessee — during his senior season after rushing for 2,308 yards and 30 touchdowns and throwing for 1,436 yards and 18 scores. As a junior, he was runner-up for the “Mr. Football” honor in Class 5A while earning a spot on the Tennessee Sportswriters Association’s all-state team.
Recruiting services were split on Wade as a college prospect, however, with Rivals and ESPN tabbing him a four-star player, slightly higher than the three stars given by 247Sports and On3.
When he wasn’t starring for the football team, Wade suited up for Summit High’s boys basketball team, where he was a three-year letter winner as a guard.
Wade’s twin brother also was on UK’s roster
Destin Wade had some familiar company in the football program: His twin brother, Keaten Wade, was an outside linebacker for the Wildcats.
But not long after Destin’s transfer became public Monday, Keaten also entered the portal after a two-season stay in Lexington.
Keaten Wade appeared in every game this fall, notching 35 tackles (3.0 for loss), a sack and three quarterback hurries in 13 outings. He also played in all 13 games for UK last season, collecting 16 tackles (2.5 for loss) to go along with 1.5 sacks and a pass breakup. He tallied three tackles in three separate contests in 2022: Miami (Ohio), Florida and Ole Miss.