Nephew of NFL great leads Mallard Creek’s offense into Friday’s showdown at Hough
Mallard Creek High football coach Mike Palmieri said he got lucky last summer when senior quarterback Casey Kelly moved into his district.
Kelly, a 6-foot-3 senior, was a two-year starter at St. Joseph’s (N.Y.) Collegiate Institute, where he was also a star on the lacrosse team.
At Mallard Creek, Kelly - the nephew of Buffalo Bills Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly - has completed 70-of-107 passes for 1,848 yards and 19 touchdowns. He’s run 40 times for 238 yards and six touchdowns, and he’s helped lead the Mavericks (8-0) to a No. 1 ranking in the Charlotte Observer’s Sweet 16 poll. Mallard Creek visits No. 2 Hough (9-0) Friday night at 7.
“Casey’s been great,” Palmieri said. “He’s done everything we’ve asked of him, on and off the field, to lead the program and we’re excited about his progression.”
Kelly presides over a Mallard Creek offense that has transformed under first-year offensive coordinator D.J. McFadden. Only four 4A teams in the state have scored more than the Mavericks’ 392 points, and Raleigh Cardinal Gibbons (401), Myers Park (401), Hope Mills South View (397) and East Forsyth (395) have all played nine games. Mallard Creek has played eight.
Mallard Creek’s 49 points-per-game average is the school’s most since the 16-0 Mavericks won their first state title in 2013 and their third-highest ever. Mallard Creek’s defense has allowed 62 points, fewest among 4A teams in the state. For teams that have played nine games, Vance (89) has allowed the fewest.
But Palmieri warns to not get too stuck on numbers.
“We’re not as good as we seem or as bad as we’ve looked,” Palmieri said. “We’ve got a lot of good things going, but we make mistakes like every team does. I don’t want to compare it to teams I’ve had in the past, but we’re happy where we are.”
Mallard Creek has won three of the past four state titles, but what the Mavericks have missed in the past two seasons was a powerhouse passing attack to mix with their dominant run game. This season, running back Charles Mincey, for example, has missed two games and played in just half of three others because they were blowouts. But he’s rushed for 732 yards and eight scores. In the pass game, Kelly is spreading the ball around to receivers Elijah Metcalf (574 yards, seven touchdowns), Damonte Furman (327, two) and Nicholas Treco (326, four).
“I just love Casey’s leadership and toughness,” Palmieri said. “We ran him last week (in a 41-20 win over North Meck) because it was a rainstorm, so we had to do what we had to do. We threw it four times. But he’ll do whatever it takes to win.
“I didn’t know he was as good a runner as he was. I guess you don’t know what a kid has until you see him (play in live games). And I like what we have in Casey Kelly.”
This story was originally published November 1, 2018 at 1:37 PM with the headline "Nephew of NFL great leads Mallard Creek’s offense into Friday’s showdown at Hough."