Kelly impresses at Elite 11
Chad Kelly did not even know where Clemson was located when the Tigers first offered but after visiting the school for its spring game the Buffalo (N.Y.) St. Joseph's dual-threat quarterback fell in love and found his future home.
"They just contacted me and they said I had an offer," Kelly said.
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"I told my mom they just offered me and she said she thinks it's in Tennessee. I didn't have a clue where it was and then we checked it out. That was the first place we visited for the spring game and I fell in love with it right when I got there."
Kelly, a 6-foot-3, 208-pound three-star prospect who shined at the Elite 11, had offers from Alabama, Cincinnati, Florida State, Louisville, Michigan State, Purdue, Rutgers and Syracuse but Clemson was the right fit for a lot of reasons.
"Everything from the people there to the football atmosphere, everything there is just awesome and I can't wait to be there," Kelly said.
"The offense they run is the exact same as my high school and it shows off the quarterback's ability to do stuff. That's the biggest thing. I'm a great athlete, not just throwing it, but running, too.
"I love running the ball. I might even like running more than passing because you can use your moves but I like to show off my arm, too."
Kelly was one of the more-consistent quarterbacks all week at the Elite 11 and even though he likes to get out of the pocket to make plays he was also comfortable sitting back there and picking apart the defense.
There's no doubt he likes to run though. In his junior season, Kelly finished with 1,057 rushing yards and 15 rushing touchdowns. He also threw for 2,159 yards with 24 scores and eight interceptions.
Rivals.com rates him as the eighth-best dual-threat quarterback in the 2012 class and third in the New York state rankings. He more than backed up those ratings during his week at the Elite 11.
"It's great being out here with these players in California and all these great quarterbacks just competing," Kelly said. "It's great to finally get in the mode of football-type play. It's just great."