Jamison Kelly growing into versatile defensive player at Jones College

ELLISVILLE, Miss. (WDAM) - Jamison Kelly spent his first two years of college football at Louisiana Tech.

He’s back in his home state of Mississippi and enjoying his time at Jones College, leading the team with 18 solo tackles and a couple of forced fumbles through three games.

“Like coach [Steve Buckley] said, this ain’t no average JUCO,” said Kelly, a sophomore defensive back. “He runs this like it’s a Division I program. Most guys that come from here are already ready for the next level.”

Jones College has sent 118 players to four-year schools in the last seven years.

Kelly’s seen some of his fellow Columbia natives like Johnathan Abram journey through Ellisville all the way to the National Football League.

What Kelly appreciates most about the Bobcats is they are utilizing his combination of size and athleticism all over the field.

“That’s what I always wanted to do because I know I wasn’t a real true safety,” Kelly said. “I know I’m a linebacker mixed with safety, corner. Coach [Lytrel] Pollard told me I’m a mutt. I do a lot of stuff. They just let me play. They know what I can do, what I can’t do. So they put me in the best situations, best spots to where I can just show the best of my abilities.”

“First of all, Jamison loves football - sometimes maybe too much,” said head coach Steve Buckley. “He’s a physical football player, he flies around. He has the length you look for, he can cover man so we have the ability to move him around. Coach Pollard does a great job of scheming things with Jamison. He does not want to come off the field, makes a lot of tackles on kickoff coverage. I can’t say it enough, he loves playing the game and plays it the way it’s supposed to be played - with great effort.”

Kelly’s fit right in with Jones College, which continues to raise the standard each season.

The Bobcats are 3-0 with a lot of football left to go. East Central visits Ellisville on Thursday at 7 p.m.

“If we tell these kids how good they are and how well they’re playing, sometimes they read too much bull mess,” Buckley said. “I think we have to focus on getting better every day. I’m not going to look at how good we are, I’m thinking about how good we can be if we all get on the same page.”

Want more WDAM 7 news in your inbox? Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.

Copyright 2022 WDAM. All rights reserved.