Shortly after NC State football's spring practice was cut short due to the coronavirus pandemic, redshirt sophomore quarterback Devin Leary sought the help of a nationally recognized quarterback consultant to both improve and maintain his fundamentals.

Enter Malcolm Bell.

No stranger to the area, Bell played four seasons for North Carolina Central before a quick stint in the Canadian Football League. At the conclusion of his playing career, he returned home to Virginia where he's developed a list of Division I quarterback clients in the commonwealth and North Carolina.

"He's worked with multiple quarterbacks that play in the ACC," said Leary of Bell following the first day of fall camp. "Mainly we just focused on little fundamental things, such as tightening up my throwing motion, footwork, typical quarterback stuff. It was really good to work with him."

Bell agreed to talk to The Wolfpacker about his time working with the NC State starting quarterback, and here are some highlights from that Q&A:

How did you get connected with Devin and how long have you been working together?

"It was a virtual kind of thing. We just touched bases via Instagram and kind of got close through there. I just passed through Raleigh in March and that's when we started off."

Where are you based and what brought you to Raleigh?

"I am based in Richmond (Va.), but I went to college and played four years at North Carolina Central, so I'm very familiar with the Triangle. I only travel to North Carolina [outside of Richmond] where I train probably five or six starters that play in the state right now."

What did you work on with Devin over the summer?

"For him, it was just a wide range of things that he wanted me to evaluate to start off. After doing that, I'd give him little tips here and there.

"Ultimately, it was more of helping him with his sequencing a little bit. Kind of shortening the throwing motion, making it quicker, making it tighter and making it more compact. Then just footwork here and there. Making sure his drops are polished, making sure he's transferring his weight properly at the top of his drops and staying in sequence.

"So, really, just little fine-tuning things that can kind of get away from you as you don't train as much anymore. It's just your spring practices, your individual drills, but you're not really focused on development because you're trying to remember plays and have successful plays for your coach."

Since you started working with him, where specifically have you seen him make the most improvement?

"I would say keeping a solid base. At times, I would tell him about him having a super wide base. You can't really generate that much power outside of your body frame, so we worked on that. I've seen a lot of improvement with him keeping a steady and consistent base, and always being able to throw from any place, any platform.

"Then, like I said, the throwing motion piece. He's tightened it up a little bit. I've said previously that he throws how he throws, so my job is just to fine-tune, make him the best that he can be and make him his best self. Not trying to change the throwing motion, but trying to just enhance it, make it better."

Where do you think he'll improve the most heading into the 2020 season compared to his five starts last year?

"Pack fans will be able to see him actually showcase all of this ability, in all areas. I think he's super confident going into this year. We touched bases when spring practice was just called off, but he felt really confident going in.

"He feels confident in Coach [Tim] Beck's offense. A competent quarterback is your best quarterback. Then just him being chosen as a starter for right now, you know, he's not looking over his shoulder and he's really focused.

"I think Pack fans will really see the full Devin Leary. The four-star quarterback that came from Jersey, set records all over the place in South Jersey, they will see that quarterback that was recruited. This offense enables him to do a lot of things that he can really shine at and I think he's put in the work."

Did he talk to you about the challenges of working with a new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach with so much time spent virtually this summer and did he share how well he was picking up the offense?

"The biggest change for him and the best change for him as he mentioned was that his quarterback coach is actually his offensive coordinator as well. I think the previous year, that wasn't the case. He is not only learning the offense but it's that coach that is looking out for you.

"Everything aligns, you're not going to hear one thing from one coach and then another from the coordinator. Above all, he feels confident that he's going to get everything that he can from Coach Beck and, again, the offense enables him to be a really good quarterback by fitting all of his skill sets."

We’re all hoping a season is played this fall, but let’s assume the ACC postpones football beyond the fall for this question. What would a canceled fall season do in terms of an impact on his progression and development, but also considering he would have more time to train between now and next season?

"For him, mentally it would probably be a bummer initially, just because he's the guy going into it this 2020 season. He's ready to prove himself, but there's nothing wrong with development, there's nothing wrong with becoming even better.

"Obviously, without a season, there's talks about a spring season and things like that, but I'd be happy myself because I wouldn't be losing a year. Just kind of continuing this whole thing.

"For me, development is never bad. You can always work on something, you can always get better at something. He should just look at this time as time to get better and get to work."

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