The University of Mississippi, or Ole Miss, is one of the premier schools in the nation for college football. Led and coached by Lane Kiffin, the Ole Miss Rebels are currently ranked twelfth in the country and have a star-studded roster. Of their many stars, Casey Kelly is a name that is beginning to ring bells after a series of major breakout games last season, however, he is coming off of an ACL injury that occurred while snowboarding in Colorado.
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Casey Kelly, who plays the tight end position, took on a significant role in the Rebels’ offense when their starting tight end committed to the NFL Draft process at the end of the 2020-2021 season. Unfortunately though, after the season ended Kelly went on a snowboarding trip in Colorado and tore both his ACL and MCL in January 2021. In regards to how the injury occurred, Kelly stated that:
“I was in Colorado going down a slope and caught an edge. There was a tree right near me, I slipped and hit the tree. My knee kinda did a whole bunch of different things.”
Kelly immediately knew that his knee injury was serious. Following surgery, he had to put his head down and grind so that he could properly rehabilitate his knee and get back to playing football at a high, competitive level. Now, in his latest press conference on October 19, 2021, the tight end said that he is feeling “one hundred percent,” and that the University “put [him] in the right position to do therapy and get to where [he] needs to be to perform on the field.”
Undoubtedly, Casey Kelly is one of Ole Miss’s hidden gems. He brings knowledge, a determined work ethic, a high spirit, and a sense of urgency and unity to the top fifteen team. Casey’s brother, Chad Kelly, played quarterback at Ole Miss and was drafted to the NFL, and Casey attributes much of his own success to his older brother who he has studied the game and watched countless hours of film with. Additionally, Casey and Chad’s uncle, Jim Kelly is a Hall of Fame Quarterback who played through the prime of his career with the Buffalo Bills. Casey’s impressive knowledge of and love for the game runs in his blood and gives him an advantage over the cornerbacks and linebackers trying to defend him.
Casey Kelly is looking to be a go-to playmaker this week when his twelfth-ranked Ole Miss Rebels take on the unranked Louisiana State University Tigers this Saturday, October 23rd at 3:30 pm on CBS.