Miami Hurricanes 50-1 Countdown: Ranking the top 50 post-spring players … No. 19 Nyjalik Kelly
No. 50 Miami DT Thomas Gore … No. 49 Malik Curtis … No. 48 Kaleb Spencer … No. 47 Ahmad Moten … No. 46 Jaden Harris … No. 45 Logan Sagapolu … No. 44 Markeith Williams … No. 43 Frank Ladson … No. 42 Chris Graves … No. 41 Keontra Smith … No. 40 Robby Washington … No. 39 Emory Williams … No. 38 Jacurri Brown … No. 37 Brashard Smith … No. 36 Terry Roberts … No. 35 Samson Okunlola … No. 34 Dylan Joyce … No. 33 Jared Harrison-Hunte … No. 32 Jaleel Skinner … No. 31 Corey Flagg … No. 30 Ray Ray Joseph … No. 29 Don Chaney … No. 28 Anez Cooper … No. 27 Branson Deen … No. 26 Zion Nelson … No. 25 Isaiah Horton … No. 24 Rueben Bain … No. 23 Daryl Porter, Jr. … No. 22 Te’Cory Couch … No. 21 Davonte Brown … No. 20 Andy Borregales
CaneSport is breaking down the top 50 post-spring players on the roster, a list that doesn’t include any post-spring roster additions. Today we break down No. 19, Nyjalik Kelly.
NO. 19 MIAMI DE NYJALIK KELLY
Why he’s No. 19
In Year 2 at Miami it’s expected Kelly will make a big jump up after getting his feet wet last year as a backup defensive end. It’s a good sign of things to come for Kelly how he did as a true freshman – the former four-star recruit out of Ft. Lauderdale Dillard had 11 tackles and four sacks while playing in every game. Per Pro Football Focus he graded out at 63.5 on the year (70 is considered a good grade) with a stellar 82.7 tackle grade, a 63.1 run defense grade and 65.4 pass rush grade. This spring, with returning starter Jahfari Harvey out injured, it was Kelly as a primary first-teamer. Now the big question is if he will start this season (with Akheem Mesidor the unquestioned starter at the other end spot). Rueben Bain is another young end to keep an eye on in fall camp, as he flashed this spring and could be a major impact as a true freshman. Regardless, look for Kelly to carve out a niche for himself on defense.
What he needs to do to move up this list
Kelly bulked up almost 10 pounds this spring, pushing to 250, and he still has room to get a bit bigger while maintaining his burst. It will be a very interesting fall battle mainly between Kelly/Harvey and Bain to determine the starter opposite Mesidor (with guys like Chantz Williams/Cyrus Moss/Jayden Wayne/Collins Acheampong probably a bit behind them). Will Kelly emerge? Well, on this list we do have him trailing Harvey … but it’s close. And it remains to be seen if new coordinator Lance Guidry will be carving up DL reps the way Kevin Steele did, to the point that backups were essentially playing as much as the starters. The bottom line for Kelly to move up this list is to prove he should be the starter … and then be consistently productive.
Realistic season objective
Right now on paper you have to say the most likely end starters will be Mesidor and Harvey, but Kelly really can be right there with Harvey in fall camp. And Mesidor can also play inside (as can Bain), which should give Kelly plenty of reps this coming season. Miami needs disruptive forces off the edges that demand double teams and cause all kinds of problems for opposing offenses. Can Kelly do that? It remains to be seen, but he showed some flashes of it last year. If he can do that consistently he’s a guy that can push past five sacks. If not he’ll be passed by on the depth chart by other talent at end, and there is quite a bit of it. Remember, this is still only his second year of college ball for Kelly, and he does have a very bright future.
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