Eight months after his unceremonious departure from Clemson, it appears as if Chad Kelly has landed on his quarterbacking feet.
In a tweet posted to his Twitter account Wednesday, Kelly, the nephew of Miami great and NFL Hall of Famer Jim Kelly, indicated that he would be transferring to Ole Miss after spending the 2014 season at the JUCO level in Mississippi. Kelly ultimately opted for the SEC school over Indiana and Virginia Tech.
Alabama was also visited on at least a couple of occasions prior to Kelly’s decision, which was made after spending the past two days in Oxford. Additionally, he had held offers from Florida State, Michigan State and Purdue.
All I Can Say Is HottyToddy!!!!!! It's A Great Day To Be A Ole Miss Rebel !!!! Can't Wait To Be A Rebel !!!! #HottyToddy
— Chad Kelly (@Chadkelly_6) December 10, 2014
Kelly is expected to participate in spring practice with the Rebels next year. With Bo Wallace out of eligibility, Kelly will compete with Ryan Buchanan and DeVante Kincade for the starting job. Both players shared backup quarterback duties this season as freshmen, with Buchanan attempting 22 passes and Kincade 17.
Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney announced April 14 that Kelly had been dismissed from the team for “conduct detrimental to our program.” Kelly, benched following a couple of interceptions, verbally sparred with assistant coaches during the spring game, which triggered the dismissal.
Kelly, along with Cole Stoudt and DeShaun Watson, had been part of a three-headed competition to replace long-time starter Tajh Boyd prior to getting the wrong end of Dabo’s boot.
A four-star member of the Tigers’ 2012 recruiting class, Kelly was rated as the No. 4 dual-threat quarterback in the country and the No. 1 player at any position in the state of New York. Kelly will have two years of eligibility remaining beginning in 2015.