Lainey Wilson fans were surprised in 2023 when he again Devlin “Duck” Hodges made their red carpet debut – but the couple have been going strong since 2021.
“He's a good guy. He's my best friend. He's my biggest cheerleader,” Wilson said. Us Weekly in her November 2025 cover story. “We lift each other up. You understand that this life is full of many nights and journeys, and we may be ships that pass in the night, but you are always my rock through it all.”
The Grammy winner called Hodges “my home, wherever we are” months before they tied the knot in May 2026.
Hodges himself had a professional football career before meeting Wilson, but his first love was duck hunting. “I'm not a football player who hunts ducks. I'm a duck hunter first,” he said in the past.
Scroll down to find out everything you need to know about Wilson's husband:
Duck Hodges was an NFL Quarterback
After playing high school football in Alabama, Hodges attended Samford University in Alabama from 2014 to 2018. Hodges left the university as the most decorated football player in program history. According to the school's website, Hodges was a three-time Southern Offensive Player of the Year, three-time All-American and winner of the 2018 Walter Payton Award. Hodges was inducted into the Samford Athletics Hall of Fame in 2024.
After his success at the collegiate level, Hodges signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers in May 2019. He was part of the NFL team in 2019 and 2020, starting six games as a quarterback. Hodges was with the Los Angeles Rams again before joining the Canadian Soccer League in 2021 as a member of the Ottawa Redblacks. He retired in 2022.
Duck Hodges is a Duck Hunter and Driver
Hodges has hunted all his life and competed in duck calling contests for decades. He first won the Junior World Duck Calling Contest in 2009 and hasn't stopped competing since. He has a passion for duck hunting and turkey hunting, showing off his kills and techniques on social media. He took Wilson out of the shot put and NFL legend Peyton Manning.
“I love hunting, especially duck hunting. It means a lot to me. It's a way of life for me,” he wrote on Instagram in July 2025. “It's led me to some of my best friends, it's led me to real estate connections. It's a reminder every time I hunt how special our God is. And on this hot day that leads into summer it's so hot! A snowy morning where it all comes together!”
Lainey Wilson got the support of her boyfriend, Devlin “Duck” Hodges, at the 2025 Country Music Association Awards. The singer, 33, and the former NFL player, 29, walked the red carpet together on Wednesday, November 19, ahead of the event at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. Wilson was a visionary in that head-to-toe teal look […]
Duck Hodges Got His Nickname From A Football Coach
“Duck comes from my freshman year of college. My coach was like, he comes from ducking and duck hunting. He started calling me 'Duck' one day and it just stopped,” Hodges revealed on the November 2025 episode of the “As a Farmer” podcast. “It worked. This is who I am.”
Hodges noted that the nickname followed him into the NFL, pointing out that they had to “ban” duck calls from one of the stadiums when he played. Pittsburgh Steelers fans even wore duck masks and had “Duck Hunting” signs in support of him.
Duck Hodges Has a Lifestyle Brand
After retiring from football, Hodges took up golf and fell in love with it. However, he did not feel that he belonged to the local teams in which he played. That realization sparked his clothing brand, Club Country, which was launched in February 2026.
“I realized that there is no brand that represents someone like me – a guy who wants a classy shirt that he can wear to class, but also to dinner or church, while staying true to his roots,” he wrote on the website.
Hodges later described his brand as a “lifestyle golf product” about “connecting a lot of the things I love to do.” He revealed on the “Like a Farmer” podcast in November 2025 that he wanted to bring “golf together on one side and the outside world feeling to bring them together.”
Duck Hodges and Lainey Wilson Married in 2026
Wilson began dating Hodges in 2021, but the two didn't make their first red carpet appearance until the 2023 ACM Awards in May. The couple announced their marriage in February 2025.
Later that year, Hodges showed support for the country singer after hosting the 2025 CMA Awards in November.
“@laineywilson, thank you for being you. You are an inspiration and a role model to so many, including this guy right here. You are absolutely OUT as a host,” she said on Instagram. “This girl right here LOVES country music and she loves this community and thank you to everyone who loves her! ❤️🎵.”
Wilson and Hodges married the following year during a May 2026 ceremony in Tennessee. The couple held their reception at Ruskin Cave, where they hosted a Cajun feast prepared by the chefs of Wilson's Bell Bottoms Up bar. Celebrities in attendance are included Miranda Lambert again Jelly Roll.
Wilson, meanwhile, ditched her signature braces to wear a custom Oscar de la Renta dress, saying, “I do,” in front of a waterfall.
“I've never seen Duck smile like he did at that moment,” Wilson said Vogue on their wedding day. “It made me feel a sense of wonder about turning this page into this next chapter of marriage.” We were both eager to say 'I do!'”
