Leroy Kelly
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Leroy Kelly (born May 20, 1942) is an American former professional
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
player who was a
running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...
for the
Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...
of the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
(NFL) from 1964 to 1973. He was inducted into the
Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional football (gridiron), professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, 1963, the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of profes ...
in 1994.


Early life and college

Kelly was born in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
on May 20, 1942. His parents Orvin and Argie (Watson) Kelly, came from
South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...
to Philadelphia in the mid-1920s. They had nine children, two of whom died of
rheumatic fever Rheumatic fever (RF) is an inflammation#Disorders, inflammatory disease that can involve the heart, joints, skin, and brain. The disease typically develops two to four weeks after a Streptococcal pharyngitis, streptococcal throat infection. Si ...
in 1940 before Kelly was born. He grew up in Nicetown, in
North Philadelphia North Philadelphia, nicknamed North Philly, is a section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is immediately north of Center City, Philadelphia, Center City. Though the full extent of the region is somewhat vague, "North Philadelphia" is regarded as ...
. He attended Simon Gratz High School in Philadelphia. During his hall of fame acceptance speech, Kelly singled out his high school coach, Louis E. DeVicaris, for getting him to college. Kelly attended
Morgan State University Morgan State University (Morgan State or MSU) is a Public university, public historically black colleges and universities, historically black research university in Baltimore, Baltimore, Maryland. It is the largest of Maryland's historically bla ...
in
Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...
, a leading
HBCU Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the intention of serving African Americans. Most are in the Southern U ...
. He is considered by many knowledgeable Philadelphia sports writers to be one of the top 10 professional athletes ever to have come out of Philadelphia's high school leagues. At Gratz, Kelly lettered in football, basketball, and baseball. In football, he played
quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...
and
middle linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the li ...
, and was a kicker, punter and kick returner as well. Kelly was team captain and won honorable mention on the Pennsylvania All Star Team. He was also a star basketball player, as well as winning honors as a high school baseball player. He was voted the most outstanding athlete in his senior year. As a baseball player, he tried out for the
Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...
, but felt he had a better future in football.


College

Kelly attended Morgan State from 1960 to 1963.
College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive Tourist attraction, attraction devoted to college football, college American football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players ...
coach, and fellow Philadelphian, Earl Banks coached Kelly at Morgan State, moving Kelly from quarterback to running back. He also played defensive back. In 1962, Kelly led Morgan State in rushing, scoring and punting, and the team won the CIAA (Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association) Championship. In 1963, his senior year, Kelly was selected as the Most Valuable Player in the
Orange Blossom Classic The Orange Blossom Classic is an American annual college football game first held from 1933 to 1978 and again since 2021. Starting back up in 2021 the game has been played on Labor Day weekend. History In its first incarnation, the Classic featu ...
. Kelly holds Morgan State records for touchdowns in a half (three against Delaware State in 1963), the longest scoring play from scrimmage (95 yards against Virginia State in 1962), and the longest punt return (67 yards against Delaware State in 1962). Kelly was inducted into Morgan State's Hall of Fame in 1977.


Career

He was selected by the Browns in the eighth round of the
1964 NFL draft The 1964 NFL draft was held in Chicago, Illinois, at the Sheraton Hotel & Towers on Monday, December 2, 1963. The first overall pick was Dave Parks, an end from Texas Tech, selected by the San Francisco 49ers. The AFL draft was two days e ...
.
Buddy Young Claude Henry K. "Buddy" Young (January 5, 1926 – September 4, 1983) was an American professional football player and executive in the National Football League (NFL). A native of Chicago, he was Illinois state champ in track and field in the 1 ...
, who was working for the NFL at the time, brought Kelly to the Browns' attention as a potential draft pick. When Kelly was in danger of being cut in training camp because an injury was limiting his play,
Jim Brown James Nathaniel Brown (February 17, 1936 – May 18, 2023) was an American professional American football, football player, civil rights activist, and actor. He played as a Fullback (gridiron football), fullback for the Cleveland Browns of the ...
went to the coach and team trainer to convince them to give Kelly a week to heal, and his job was saved. As a Cleveland
rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience, a rookie is typically considered needing more tra ...
he was a key return man, averaging 24.3 yards per return and contributing to the Browns' 1964 NFL championship. He was backup running back behind featured fullback Jim Brown and blocking halfback Ernie Green. He moved up to become the Browns' featured running back after Brown's retirement at the end of the 1965 season. The Browns would make the playoffs in 7 of the 10 years Kelly played for them. Jim Brown, one of the greatest college and professional football players of all time, and the first person selected to the NFL's 100th Anniversary team, told Browns coach
Blanton Collier Blanton Long Collier (July 2, 1906 – March 22, 1983) was an American football head coach who coached at the University of Kentucky between 1954 and 1961 and for the Cleveland Browns in the National Football League (NFL) between 1963 and 1970. ...
that he need not worry about Brown's retirement because Kelly would be a great replacement and a top NFL running back. Hall of fame receiver
Paul Warfield Paul Dryden Warfield (born November 28, 1942) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) from 1964 to 1977 for the Cleveland Browns and Miami Dolphins, except for a year in t ...
, who was the Browns first draft pick in 1964, considered Kelly's kick returning that year a key to the team's championship success, and that Kelly's return ability and style generally caused a change in strategy around the league for kick returns. When Jim Brown retired before the 1966 season, Kelly became the starter. For the next three years, he rushed for 1,000 yards each year, with a total of 3,585, led the league in rushing touchdowns, and led the NFL in rushing in 1967 and 1968, after having finished second to
Gale Sayers Gale Eugene Sayers (May 30, 1943 – September 23, 2020) was an American professional football halfback and return specialist in the National Football League (NFL). Sayers played for the Chicago Bears from 1965 to 1971, though injuries effec ...
in 1966. Although second to Sayers in total yards in 1966, he led the NFL with a 5.5 yards-per-carry average, 1,507 total yards, 15 rushing touchdowns and 16 total touchdowns. From 1966 to 1968, he won All-NFL and starting Pro Bowl honors. Kelly also played in three other Pro Bowls following the 1969, 1970 and 1971 seasons, and earned first-team All-NFL in 1969 and 1971. In 1968, he scored a touchdown in a franchise-record 12 games, and two-or-more touchdowns in a franchise-record 7. In game 12 of the 1970 season, he passed Bill Brown as the career rushing-yards leader among active players, a position he maintained until his retirement in 1974. Kelly led the NFL in rushing for two consecutive seasons (1967–1968). He also was a talented punt and kick returner, who averaged 10.5 yards per punt return and 23.5 yards per kick return for his career. He was the NFL's leading punt returner in 1965 and the AFC's top punt returner in 1971. After his excellent play in 1966, Kelly sought to double his salary of $20,000, and the Browns refused his demands. Along with some other Browns players, they reporting late to training camp. After being fined, Kelly decided to play out his contract option in 1967 at a 10% pay cut. He led the league with 1,205 yards rushing, averaging 5.1 yards a carry, and Browns owner
Art Modell Arthur Bertram Modell (June 23, 1925 – September 6, 2012) was an American businessman, entrepreneur and National Football League (NFL) team owner. He owned the Cleveland Browns franchise for 35 years and established the Baltimore Ravens f ...
accepted that Kelly had gambled on his contract and won. In 1968, Kelly signed a four-year contract with the Browns for $250,000. Kelly ended his pro career with the Chicago Fire of the
World Football League The World Football League (WFL) was an American football league that played one full season in 1974 in sports, 1974 and most of its second in 1975 in sports, 1975. Although the league's proclaimed ambition was to bring American football onto a w ...
in 1974, rushing for 315 yards (4.1 average) and catching 8 passes for 128 yards (16.0 average). At the time of his retirement Kelly, had rushed for 7,274 yards (then 4th all-time to
Jim Brown James Nathaniel Brown (February 17, 1936 – May 18, 2023) was an American professional American football, football player, civil rights activist, and actor. He played as a Fullback (gridiron football), fullback for the Cleveland Browns of the ...
, Joe Perry, and Jim Taylor) and 74 touchdowns (3rd) on 1,727 carries for 4.2 yards per carry. He also caught 190 passes for 2,281 yards and 13 touchdowns. On
special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their position. Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...
, he returned 94 punts for 990 yards and 3 touchdowns, and 76 kickoffs for 1,784 yards. Overall, he gained 12,330 all-purpose yards and scored 90 touchdowns. He was named All-NFL five times and to six
Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...
s. After his retirement as an active player, he remained in the World Football League as the
Philadelphia Bell The Philadelphia Bell was a franchise in the World Football League, which operated in 1974 and a portion of a season in 1975. The Bell played their home games in 1974 at JFK Stadium in South Philadelphia. The team logo was a representation of ...
's offensive backfield coach, joining two other Hall of Famers on that staff, former
Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...
defensive backfield standouts
Willie Wood William Vernell Wood Sr. (December 23, 1936February 3, 2020) was an American professional football player and coach. He played as a safety with the Green Bay Packers in the National Football League (NFL). Wood was an eight-time Pro Bowler and ...
(the first black head coach in pro football history) and fellow Philadelphian
Herb Adderley Herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal purposes, or for fragrances. Culinary use typically distingui ...
(defensive coordinator).


Honors

Kelly has received the following honors, among others; * Voted to the
Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional football (gridiron), professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, 1963, the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of profes ...
(1994) * One of 11 players from the 1964 NFL draft class in the hall of fame, including his Brown's teammate Paul Warfield, a record for any one draft class * Selected to the
Black College Football Hall of Fame The Black College Football Hall of Fame (BCFHOF) is an American hall of fame for college football players, coaches and contributors from historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). It was founded in 2009 in Atlanta, centrally located to ...
(2013) * Inducted into the Browns Ring of Honor (2010) * Inducted into Morgan State's Hall of Fame (1977) * Member of the
Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame The Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame is a nonprofit organization in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that was established in May 2002 to honor individuals and groups who are either area natives who became prominent in the field of sports or who became ...
* Winner of the
Maxwell Football Club The Robert W. Maxwell Football Club (originally called the Maxwell Football Club of Philadelphia) was established in 1935 in sports#American football, 1935 to promote safety in the game of American football. Named in honor of Tiny Maxwell, Robert ...
's
Bert Bell Award The Bert Bell Award is presented by the Maxwell Football Club to the player of the year in the National Football League (NFL). The award is named in honor of Bert Bell De Benneville "Bert" Bell (February 25, 1895 – October 11, 1959) was an ...
for NFL player of the year (1968) * Selected to the 1960s all decade team * Selected All NFL five times (1966-1969, 1971) * Played in six Pro Bowls (three as a starter from 1966-1968)


Family

Pat Kelly, his younger brother, was an
All-Star An all-star team is a group of people all having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and has been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry. Sports "All-star" as a sport ...
outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...
who played for five teams during a 15-year
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
career. Felicia Kelly, Leroy's only daughter, worked in the local news business for 20 years at Cleveland's
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...
affiliate
WEWS-TV WEWS-TV (channel 5) is a television station in Cleveland, Ohio, United States, affiliated with ABC. It has been owned by the E. W. Scripps Company since its inception in 1946, making it one of three stations that have been built and signed on ...
. She worked in the engineering department, as a news source reporter, and hosted a half-hour entertainment show called "The Set." She is now an educator in the Cleveland Public School System. David Kelly, his eldest son, is sports anchor and reporter for
KMSB KMSB (channel 11) is a television station in Tucson, Arizona, United States, affiliated with the Fox network. It is owned by Tegna Inc. alongside dual CW/MyNetworkTV affiliate KTTU-TV (channel 18); Tegna maintains a shared services agreement ...
-TV in
Tucson, Arizona Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...
. Leroy Kelly II his second son, played 3 years in the
American Indoor Football League American Indoor Football (AIF) is a professional indoor football league, one of the several regional professional indoor football leagues in North America. The AIFL began as a regional league with six franchises on the East Coast of the United ...
and 1 year overseas in the GFL Germany League For the Kiel-Baltic Hurricanes. Leroy Kelly II was invited to 2 workouts with the
Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...
and 1 with the
Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...
.


NFL career statistics


References


External links

* ''Pro Football Hall of Fame:'
Member – Leroy Kelly
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kelly, Leroy 1942 births Living people American football running backs Cleveland Browns players Chicago Fire (WFL) players Morgan State Bears football players Philadelphia Bell coaches American Conference Pro Bowl players Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees Players of American football from Philadelphia African-American coaches of American football 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen