The University of Mississippi Athletics
Rebels Ink Nation's Top JUCO Quarterback
12/17/2014 | Football, Blog
Official welcome to Chad Kelly, the No. 1 JUCO QB in the country from national champion East Mississippi CC. #HottyToddy
-- Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) December 17, 2014Just Sent My LOI In To The University Of Mississippi!!! Feel's Good To Be A Ole Miss Rebel!!! Time To Work!!
-- Chad Kelly (@ChadKelly_11) December 17, 2014Ole Miss officially announced the signing of Chad Kelly, a NCJCAA first team All-American selection and rated the No. 1 quarterback in the nation by the all the major recruiting services.Â
Kelly, the nephew of Hall of Famer Jim Kelly, looks to step in and battle rising sophomores Ryan Buchanan and DeVante Kincade for the opportunity to replace record-setting senior quarterback Bo Wallace, another former EMCC standout.Â
"Bringing in a JUCO quarterback is something we gave a lot of thought to as far as creating the depth and competition we needed to," head coach Hugh Freeze said. "We followed Chad throughout the year and we were very, very impressed with the job he did running the offense for East. Probably toward end of year, once I had some face-to-face conversations with him, he came to a couple games and then the official visit, and I did my home visit with he and his family after their championship game, and I was convinced he was the guy we wanted to go on. It was something that happened over time."
"When Ryan is confident and going through his reads, he's really smart with the football," Wallace said. "DeVante is a great athlete, great player, and he has a great arm. And I have watched Chad play. He's going to be a good player, too. He's a talented kid. He signed with Clemson out of high school, and then you watch him at East. He really ran that offense well. He threw a lot of touchdowns and not a lot of picks, so he should come in and definitely compete."
The 6-foot-3, 220-pound Kelly completed 66.9 percent of his passes and threw for 3,906 yards with 47 touchdowns and eight interceptions, as he led East Mississippi Community College to a 12-0 record and the national championship. His 47 touchdowns was tied for the nation's lead and his 3,906 yards ranked second in the nation.
In limited action this season, Buchanan is 12-of-22 for 75 yards with an interception, while Kincade is 15-of-17 for 116 yards with a touchdown and has rushed for 90 yards and a touchdown. Sophomore tight end Evan Engram has seen a difference in them with the anticipated addition of Kelly.
"Our coaching staff, we recruit the best in the country," Engram said. "That's no shock to us. It's just going to better us and better this team, add more depth. We got to have depth in the SEC. That definitely starts a fire under them. I know Chad's a good quarterback, definitely, because he's coming here. We wouldn't be bringing anybody who's not good enough. That sets a fire under Ryan and DeVante. It's going to be an interesting battle."
Buchanan and Kincade have received a lot of reps with the number-one offense in bowl practices this week due in part to the coaches taking it easy with Wallace, who suffered a sprained ankle against Arkansas on Nov. 22.
"They have responded wonderfully," Freeze said. "They have had great practices the last few weeks, and I think both of those guys have bright futures. At this level, if you want to be great, you have to create competition. Both have responded really well. They're not concerned about the competition, and I don't think Chad is either. We'll get them all here in the spring and figure out what's best for the team."
