KNOXVILLE - Playing major college football isn't the same for everyone. Some do it, believe it or not, to get an education that will allow them to turn professional in something other than their sport, as the NCAA is only too happy to remind us on occasion.
Others clearly hope to become pro players and realize their childhood dreams to earn millions of dollars in the National Football League.
Then there are those who simply love the game, and the camaraderie with their teammates, and, just maybe, the fun and fame that so often comes with playing for Big State U.
For Tennessee redshirt senior defensive back Todd Kelly Jr., all of those scenarios have somewhat applied at one point or another. An injury-plagued career that may have short-circuited his NFL dreams also should help him be remembered as one of the most beloved and determined Volunteers ever.
His mere answer to Monday's question of whether it was a tough decision to come back for a fifth year following a true senior season cut short by a knee injury should wind up on a banner somewhere in the football complex.
"It wasn't a tough decision at all," said the son of former UT star Todd Kelly Sr. "When you speak about the program, the University of Tennessee, that's my pride and joy. My blood runs orange. I grew up here. I'm a Knoxville native, so when I had the decision to come back again, why would I not try to extend my career for this ball team, for this community and for this city?"
It wasn't just his choice of words, however. It was the passion in his voice as he spoke them. The twinkle in his eye. The smile on his face.
"I grew up sitting in Section YY, watching the Tennessee Vols run through the 'T,'" Kelly continued. "When I was hurt, I was still on the sideline in my jersey, screaming at the top of my lungs, just like a fan. The love of the game is what keeps you in it."
Yet it's been his love of life and empathy for those less fortunate that makes him special by almost any measuring stick.
There's the four years he's made the SEC Academic Honor Roll despite majoring in biomedical engineering, which isn't exactly one of those keeps-you-eligible majors. There's his induction into the Omicron Delta Kappa National Leadership Honor Society.
Perhaps most touching and telling was his decision to change his jersey number from No. 6 to No. 24 before his junior season in 2016 in order to honor Zaevion Dobson, the former Fulton High School star who was killed in 2015 while shielding two girls from a drive-by shooting. The 15-year-old Dobson wore No. 24 for Fulton.
Yet let's just say all you care about is what Kelly did on the field before the injury. He made the Freshman All-SEC team in 2014. He led the Vols in interceptions and was fifth on the team in tackles as a sophomore despite starting only two of 13 games. As a junior he not only led the team in tackles with 71 but made 11 (seven solos) against Alabama.
Not that Kelly would recite those statistics first when discussing what's most important about one's college football career.
"First off, it starts with academics," he said of the advice he gives his younger teammates. "We are all student-athletes, so I tell them you take care of your academics before you take care of your stuff on the football field. I came into this season as a graduate in biological sciences, and I told them getting your degree is of the upmost importance when you come to the University of Tennessee."
Of course, when your father was a first-team All-SEC performer and third-team Associated Press All-American, you don't overlook Big Orange football history entirely.
"I talk about the alumni and tradition," Kelly said. "There are a lot of good people who have come and played before you. Cornerback for example: Jason Allen, Terry Fair, who coaches for the team. (Fair) was quite a player here. Twice All-SEC. You can look up his stats."
If the Vols can expand their four current wins to at least six in their three remaining contests - beginning with a visit from Kentucky on Saturday - Kelly could have as many as four more games to pad his career stats. If the Vols win no more than one more, his five years on the roster will end two days after Thanksgiving against Vanderbilt in Nashville.
Either way, Kelly will run through the "T" on the floor of Neyland Stadium as a Vols player for the final time on Nov. 17 against Missouri.
"I was on crutches for six to eight weeks," he said of this past summer's lingering issues from last year's knee injury. "I wasn't sure I'd be back out here. Just so grateful to get even one more snap with my teammates."
He played enough snaps in last Saturday's win over Charlotte to record seven tackles. Such productivity the rest of the season could certainly improve UT's bowl chances.
But somewhere down the road, this season may have also improved college football's chances of one day having Kelly back on the sidelines as a coach.
"My dad coached me in little league," he said. "He was pretty hard on me. Now I know why. I do love the game. Maybe there could be some coaching opportunities for me in the future."
If so, biomedical engineering's loss certainly would be college football's gain.
Contact Mark Wiedmer at mwiedmer@timesfreepress.com