Gators linebacker David Reese led the team in tackles in the season opener. (Photo: Tim Casey/UAA Communications)
Foes & Friends: Reese and Kelly Meet again in UF-UT Clash
Thursday, September 14, 2017 | Football, Scott Carter
Florida linebacker David Reese and Tennessee running back John Kelly played on the same PAL team in Detroit growing up.
Gators linebacker David Reese was the quarterback. Tennessee junior John Kelly the team's standout running back. They won a lot. They had fun. They remain close.
"Every time we go home, we go back and speak to our little league team,'' Reese said.
Their connection on the field didn't end there.
In his final year at Oak Park (Mich.) High, Kelly faced Reese as opponents in the district playoffs. A year older than Reese, Kelly ran for 144 yards and three touchdowns in Oak Park's 38-13 victory over Reese's Farmington (Mich.) High. Reese scored on a 1-yard run in the second quarter that gave Farmington the lead before Kelly and the Knights ran away.
Reese and Kelly meet again on Saturday when No. 23-ranked Tennessee visits No. 24 Florida in the Gators' home opener. When the Vols won last year's matchup in Knoxville, neither Kelly nor Reese were factors.
That won't be the case on Saturday afternoon. Their friendship gets pushed aside for about four hours, as their paths are likely to cross many times.
Kelly is the only player in the Southeastern Conference who leads his team in rushing (204 yards) and receiving (10 catches). Reese led the Gators with 11 tackles in their season-opening loss to Michigan.
"He's a physical back,'' Reese said. "He runs hard. He's a good back."
Kelly was buried on the depth chart early last season behind veterans Jalen Hurd and Alvin Kamara. Hurd left in the middle of the season and Kamara is now a rookie with the New Orleans Saints.
Kelly finished his sophomore season by leading the team in rushing with 630 yards. He is off to better start in 2017, running for a career-high 128 yards and four touchdowns in Tennessee's season-opening win over Georgia Tech in double-overtime. Kelly has touched the ball 47 times in two games for the Vols and is averaging 6.5 yards per touch.
He will undoubtedly be a focus for Florida's defense.
"John Kelly just needs to be John Kelly, no more, no less," Tennessee coach Butch Jones said during preseason camp. "He has to remember all the things that got him to this point, all the hard work, dedication, the sacrifice. He's done that. He's a very prideful individual as we all know. He plays inspired football and he can't lose that. He won't.
"He's also smart enough to realize that it can't be a one-man show."
The 5-foot-9, 205-pound Kelly was determined to become a special player as far back as those days on the Cougars according to Reese. Nothing has changed.
"After he breaks a 6-yard run, he gets up and looks like he just scored three touchdowns back-to-back-to-back," Tennessee senior offensive tackle Brett Kendrick told the Chattanooga Times Free Press this week. "He always gets up off the ground, bounces right back up. It's always good to see a running back do that, especially if he breaks one for 20 or 30 yards and he bounces back up and wants Coach to give him the ball back."
A year after not playing against the Gators, Kelly is now a key playmaker for an offense led by ex-quarterback Josh Dobbs the past three seasons.
Reese said their friendship is on hold this week. No phone calls. He wants to stop Kelly on Saturday and talk to him afterward.
"What I can say is he's a hard runner and we've just gotta make sure we tackle," Reese said. "The last two games, we had 78 missed tackles against Tennessee, so just this game period we're going to have to wrap up. I'm excited to play him and I know what he can do."
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