Why Kyle Kelly joined On3 to cover Notre Dame football recruiting
Six years ago, my expertise in college football recruiting extended to the six FBS prospects I played with at Toledo (Ohio) St. John’s Jesuit High School. While fans didn’t see much of me on their television screens Friday nights, they surely could catch me every Friday morning.
At 5-foot-8, 205 pounds as a high school senior, I am still unsure why I even bothered to play football, nonetheless, offensive line. I excelled at immobile run blocks and penalty-packed pass protection. But at the end of each week, I could broadcast an in-depth fantasy football report fine.
During high school, I didn’t go on college recruiting visits. After all, I wouldn’t have been great at those either, considering I fell in love with — and eventually committed — to the first of four schools I visited: John Carroll University.
JCU is a Division III school in Cleveland, Ohio, home to about 3,000 students. It’s best known for producing the coaching likes of Don Shula, Josh McDaniels, Brandon Staley and Greg Roman. And the front office folks such as Tom Telesco, Nick Caserio and Dave Ziegler.
When I embarked on my journey at John Carroll University, I figured I’d follow in their footsteps as an NFL coach or personnel man. However, I quickly discovered that my true calling was sports media. And every step since has led me to this position.
As a freshman, my biggest mentor, the late Chris Wenzler, gave me the opportunity to be a secondary student contact for a football team coming off a final-four berth a season earlier. Over the next four years, that role turned into working intimately with JCU’s 22 other varsity sports teams.
In the meantime, I freelanced high school sports stories for cleveland.com and The News-Herald. And during the fall of 2020, I began assisting with coverage of Ohio State football recruiting for cleveland.com.
Although I still knew next to nothing about college football recruiting, cleveland.com sports editor Dave Campbell helped me quickly find my passion.
I furthered my sports media education by pursuing a master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern’s Medill School in September 2021. Around that same time, a flashy, cutting-edge college sports media company called On3 launched.
Over the next several months, I felt enthusiastic about what On3 was building in the football recruiting industry and knew I wanted to be a part of it. Starting Feb. 20, 2023, I finally am.
I wouldn’t be here without Eric Hansen and Tyler James offering me my first full-time opportunity to cover Notre Dame football recruiting for Inside ND Sports on the Rivals network. Hansen and James are outstanding reporters and professionals, and their mentorship has propelled me to become a stronger reporter.
My 11 months with Rivals provided a strong foundation for covering college football recruiting, which includes relationships with the top high school football players and coaches from around the country. I am fortunate to utilize those connections to enhance the coverage of Notre Dame for the market leader, BlueandGold.com.
I am also thrilled to cover Notre Dame for a company on sports media’s upswing. I am eager to utilize multiple platforms to engage with the On3 audience and to correspond with a loyal array of subscribers. Most importantly, I am excited to continue telling the stories of recruits nationwide while contributing to team coverage.
But enough about me. This next career step is about serving you. Thank you to those who have followed my coverage so far and those who are just beginning. I cannot wait to start, and I hope you’re as excited to follow along.
Join the conversation: BlueandGold.com subscribers CLICK HERE to welcome Kyle to the On3 team!
