Ellison Kelly, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

    

Ellison Kelly

American football player

Date of Birth: 17-May-1935

Place of Birth: Butler, Georgia, United States

Date of Death: 11-Feb-2016

Profession: American football player, Canadian football player

Nationality: United States

Zodiac Sign: Taurus


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About Ellison Kelly

  • Ellison Lamar Kelly (May 17, 1935 – February 11, 2016) was an American and Canadian football offensive lineman for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats from 1960–1970 and the Toronto Argonauts from 1971-1972 of the Canadian Football League.
  • He also played in the National Football League for the New York Giants.
  • Kelly never missed a game in his 12 seasons in the CFL, playing 175 consecutive games.
  • Kelly usually played guard or tackle, but the versatile performer also provided depth at the defensive end and linebacker positions.
  • Teammates recall him as being a tough, solid competitor, even when injured.
  • He won three Grey Cups for the Tiger-Cats in 1963, 1965 & 1967 and played in the 1971 Grey Cup with the Argonauts. Kelly was drafted in the fifth round of the 1959 NFL Draft by the Giants after a stellar career at Michigan State University, but he opted to go to Canada to play in the CFL in his second season.
  • Kelly is one of the few football players to have a race horse named after him.
  • "Wildcat Kelly" was a gelding pacer in the stable of Yellow and Black farms of Hamilton, a partnership of Dill (Pickles) Southwick, a former quarterback for the Hamilton Tigers, and businessmen Bruce Woodward and George Ridpath.
  • (Yellow and Black were the colours of the Tiger Cats.) As of 1970, the six-year-old "Wildcat Kelly" had won $14,000 in its lifetime.Kelly was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 1992.
  • He spent his entire post-football life in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, first as a teacher with the Hamilton Board of Education, and later as a Recreations Officer with the Hamilton-Wentworth Detention Centre, where he was regarded as a gentle giant and a gentleman.
  • He was a frequent guest on Tiger Cat alumni days and was asked to speak on many occasions.
  • His speeches were often dominated by a spiritual appreciation and gratitude for the wonderful life and opportunities he had been given.
  • He continued to live in Hamilton until his death in 2016.

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