Ole Miss senior quarterback Chad Kelly reportedly tore his ACL and meniscus on Saturday against Georgia Southern. He is out for the season for the Rebels.
While the Ole Miss Rebels were able to get their fourth victory of the season on Saturday against the Georgia Southern Eagles, it came at a costly price. Senior quarterback Chad Kelly reportedly tore his ACL and his meniscus in his knee.
This means that Kelly is done for the season and his career in Oxford has come to an end. Hugh Kellenberger of the Jackson Clarion-Ledger first broke the devastating news for Ole Miss football.
Chad Kelly tore his ACL and lateral meniscus on Saturday. Out for the year.
— Hugh Kellenberger (@KellenbergerCBB) November 7, 2016
Hard to overstate how much that loss means.
Kelly was what was holding up this rebuilding Ole Miss team in 2016. His gunslinger mentality was both a blessing and a curse for this underperforming football team of Hugh Freeze.
Ole Miss had a realistic shot of still making it to a bowl game with games against Vanderbilt and Mississippi State left on the schedule. Without Kelly at quarterback, Ole Miss won’t be favored in any of its three remaining games.
The Rebels are now essentially doomed to finish 4-8 in 2016. There is no way they’ll beat Texas A&M in College Station on Saturday. With Vanderbilt having a great defense led by linebacker Zach Cunningham and Mississippi State finding something at quarterback in Nick Fitzgerald, Ole Miss probably won’t win a game until next season.
Next: Best college quarterback born in every state
Their only hope is to burn true freshman Shea Patterson’s redshirt. Not sure Freeze wants to do that for a season that is probably already lost for the Ole Miss football program. Ole Miss has made it to two straight New Year’s Six bowls. Now, the Rebels would need a miracle to go bowling.