| Kevin Kelly |
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Outstanding special teams always have been a hallmark of Joe Paterno's teams and the return of a dependable and experienced kicker in junior Kevin Kelly will help ensure that that tradition continues in 2007. A probable Lou Groza Award candidate, the left-footed Kelly got 2006 off on the right foot by kicking the game-winning field goal in the third overtime at the FedEx Orange Bowl. He went on to have a productive, busy and record sophomore season. Kelly tied the school record by connecting on 22 field goals in 2006, equaling the mark set by Matt Bahr in 1978. The former all-stater was tied for second nationally in field goals made per game (1.69 avg.) and his 22 treys trailed only UCLA's Justin Medlock (28) and Wake Forest's Sam Swank (23) in the nation. Kelly's 34 field goal attempts last year broke the Penn State season mark of 33, set by Chris Bahr in 1975. Kelly and the Bahr brothers all are graduates of Neshaminy HS. Kelly's 5-7 stature belies his powerful and accurate leg and with two years of pressurized experience to his credit, he is poised to emerge as one of the elite kickers in the Big Ten in 2007. In two seasons, he already has leapt into a tie for No. 7 on the Lions' career field goals list with 38, just 13 away from breaking Craig Fayak's school record. The quiet and confident Kelly owns a better than 3.0 grade-point average and earned Academic All-Big Ten honors last season. He was a prep teammate of redshirt freshman Tom McEowen.
2006> Sophomore Season
Kelly led the Nittany Lions with 96 points and tied for the Big Ten lead in overall scoring (7.4 ppg), while leading the conference in kick scoring. For the season, he was 22-of-34 on field goals and a perfect 30-of-30 on PAT attempts, tied with two others for the conference lead at 100 percent. Kelly had 51 kickoffs, averaging 60.4 yards per attempt, with 20 touchbacks. Kelly connected on a pair of career-long 49-yard field goals to highlight his sophomore campaign. He hit three field goals against Youngstown State, including his first 49-yard effort. He also drilled an important 49-yard trey in the comeback win over Illinois. Kelly equaled his career-high by connecting on all four of his field goal attempts and going three-of-three on PAT attempts for 15 points in the Nittany Lions' 33-7 win over Northwestern. He made 39 and 42-yard field goals in a steady rain against Akron and hit a pair of field goals at Ohio State. Kelly was four-of-four on PATs at Minnesota, including the game-winner in overtime. Kelly made 29 and 44-yard field goals in the 12-0 win at Purdue, battling winds that gusted to 40 miles per hour during the game. He drilled a 39-yard trey at No. 17 Wisconsin to knot the game at 3-3 in the second quarter. Kelly made an important 45-yard field goal in the fourth quarter against Michigan State, boosting the Lions' lead to 17-13 and hit a pair of field goals in the 20-10 win over Tennessee in the Outback Bowl. He was on the field for 109 snaps. Kelly earned Academic All-Big Ten accolades.
2005 Freshman Season
Kelly came into the season already having distinguished himself as the first Nittany Lion true freshman to earn place-kicking duties in a season-opener since Craig Fayak in 1990. Kelly got the nod in the opener against South Florida and as the regular-season concluded he had further distinguished himself by breaking Fayak's school freshman scoring record. But, Kelly forever etched his name in Penn State lore in the FedEx Orange Bowl, connecting on a 29-yard field goal in the third overtime to lift the Nittany Lions to a thrilling 26-23 victory over Florida State. Kelly handled the pressure well throughout his rookie season and ranked fifth in the Big Ten in scoring (second among kickers) with 99 points. The Sporting News and collegefootballnews.com recognized his efforts by selecting Kelly as a third-team Freshman All-American. He also was named to TSN's Freshman All-Big Ten team. He connected on 16 of 23 field goal attempts and was 49-of-50 on PAT attempts. His 99 points were good for ninth place on the Penn State season list and shattered Fayak's freshman scoring mark of 74 points in 1990. Kelly's game-winning field goal against Florida State gave him 16 for the season to break a tie with Fayak for the Penn State freshman mark. The 16 treys were tied for 11th place on the school season field goal list overall. Kelly came through with the top game of his rookie season against Purdue, connecting on all four of his field goal attempts and going three-of-three on PAT tries to break the school freshman season scoring mark. He made field goals of 27, 25, 33 and 22 yards en route to tallying a season-best 15 points. His 33-yard effort came on the last play of the first half for a 16-7 Penn State lead. The last time a Nittany Lion had made four field goals was Robbie Gould at Wisconsin in 2002. Against Minnesota, Kelly made three field goals, including a 47-yarder, his longest of the season. He also connected on a 41-yard field goal in the huge 17-10 win over Ohio State. Besides his kicking talents, Kelly took a fumbled hold at Michigan and alertly found a seam and demonstrated his athleticism by running for a two-point conversion and an 18-10 lead early in the fourth quarter.
High School
Kelly had an outstanding career at Neshaminy HS, where he was a four-year starter in football and a two-year starter on the baseball diamond. He was an Associated Press first-team all-state pick and a four-time all-league selection for Coach Mark Schmidt on the gridiron. Kelly was the Bucks County Courier-Times and The Trentonian first-team all-area place-kicker. He was 10-of-17 on field goals as a senior and did not miss an extra point his last two years. As a freshman, he connected on a 54-yard field goal and helped Neshaminy win the 2001 Class AAAA state championship. He was selected to play in the 2005 Big 33 Classic against Ohio. Kelly also earned honorable-mention all-state honors and was all-league twice in baseball.
Personal
Full name is Kevin Patrick Kelly. He has an older sister, Meghan, and lists sports and music as hobbies. Kelly is a kinesiology major. Born August 1, 1987 in Bristol, Pa.
