Last year, the biggest story of spring practice was who would be the new quarterback for the Rebels. Ryan Buchanan and DeVante Kincade had been on campus for two years, but junior college transfer Chad Kelly entered as a challenger and eventually won the job, breaking several single-season passing records in his first season with the Rebels.
Quarterback Chad Kelly addresses the media during the spring press conference on Thursday. (Photo by: Cameron Brooks)
There was a time when there was worry over whether Kelly would ever join the team, and whether he would handle himself responsibly off the field if he did, since Kelly had been arrested in Buffalo, New York shortly after signing with Ole Miss in 2014.
One year later, Kelly has emerged as one of the leaders on a Rebels team that’s coming off a Sugar Bowl victory and hoping for bigger things in the next campaign.
Head coach Hugh Freeze said he was proud of Kelly’s progress since he joined the Rebels.
“I believe in the nature of kids and giving kids second chances,” Freeze said. “Obviously, I did with Chad. Was it a concern that he could do something that could bring embarrassment? Of course, but I have that concern with every kid that we sign typically because they’re kids.”
Since Kelly arrived in Oxford, he has kept free of trouble and been a model citizen on and off the field for the Rebels.
“I couldn’t be more pleased with what Chad has done on the field and off the field,” Freeze continued. “He just continues to seek the type of man he wants to be known. We refer to that as rewriting his story or writing the end of your story.”
Freeze spoke with Kelly yesterday, his leadership one of the main topics of discussion. As a quarterback, Kelly is looked at for leadership of the team.
On the field, Kelly said he feels he’s improved since he began his career at Ole Miss. Kelly had a special year in 2015 and is looking to repeat that during 2016.
“I’m definitely a lot more confident from the first game to the last game,” Kelly said. “I feel like I can see the whole field, I can go through my first to fifth progression just like that, and that’s just getting used to the offense, understanding what coaches are going to call in certain situations, and just getting more familiar with the players and how they run certain routes.”
There was some talk about the chance of Kelly trying to go pro after his junior year, but Kelly quickly decided he was coming back to Ole Miss for his final season.
“It wasn’t a tough decision at all because I really want to win an SEC championship and a national championship,” Kelly said. “That’s our main goal, that’s the whole team’s goal. We really feel like we can do that.”
– Cody Thomason
