Kelly checks out Bama

Saturday's home opener in Tuscaloosa was an opportunity for Knoxville (Tenn.) Webb School 2014 safety Todd Kelly to visit Alabama and take in a game. It was also a chance for Kelly to see his sister, who cheers for the Crimson Tide.

"We got to see her and that's always good," Kelly said. "She is enjoying it down there."

Kelly has connections to several schools through family members, and his sister certainly is not against him joining her in Tuscaloosa.

"She always told me she'd still get to cheer for me like she did in high school if I went down there," Kelly said. "But she mainly just wants me to be happy wherever I go. It won't be a factor for me, but she would appreciate it if I did go down there, for sure."

With two dozen scholarship offers to his name already, Kelly has a wealth of college options and Alabama is one he is looking at seriously.

"They are recruiting me pretty hard and sending me a lot of mail already," Kelly said. "It's pretty exciting and they will probably be one of my main teams here once I decide to choose.

"They are pretty big about football down there. They treat the football players like celebrities when they are out on the streets, so that's pretty cool."

Kelly was able to meet with most of the coaches on Alabama's staff during his visit - including head coach Nick Saban and defensive coordinator Kirby Smart. They dispatched of Western Kentucky soundly by a final of 35-0, and Kelly was paying attention to the scheme and personnel the Crimson Tide utilized in the win.

"I definitely watched the defensive backs for the majority of the game," Kelly said. "I saw the scheme they run and just sampled some of their defensive because everyone knows their defense is one of the most complicated in the country. I'll probably learn more about it as the process continues, but for right now I was watching it more as a fan."

There were a number of recruits in attendance for Saturday's game, and Kelly said he met up Hoover, Ala., cornerback Marlon Humphrey and Suwanee (Ga.) North Gwinnet defensive end Dante Sawyer - guys he had known previously.

The trip to Alabama was Kelly's first of the season. He will follow it up this weekend by staying in-town and seeing a match-up of top 25 teams when Tennessee plays host to Florida.

"That is a huge game and both teams are undefeated," Kelly said. "People are saying whoever wins that game might be the favorite for the SEC East. It's definitely going to be a big-time game with College Gameday, so I'm looking forward to it."

Kelly has no more trips scheduled beyond this weekend, but expects to look into other trips as the season progresses.