John Kelly

Classroom

John Kelly is an insurance major in Ohio State’s Fisher College of Business. He is a three-time OSU scholar athlete and has twice been an Academic All-Big Ten choice. He also contributed to a record-number of scholar-athletes on the men’s lacrosse team in the fall of 2017.

Character

This fall, Kelly was selected by his coaches as one of four captains for the 2018 Buckeyes. In 2016, he played in just four games before being forced to sit out with an injury, but he returned to form in 2017 by playing in 20 of 21 games.

Community

Kelly leads the way for the men’s lacrosse program in community service, logging visits with the 2nd and 7 Foundation, After School All-Stars, Grow the Game and the Special Olympics, among others. He’s made multiple visits with his teammates to local elementary and middle school with Grow the Game, which aims to promote lacrosse to youth in the Central Ohio area. In all, he’s tallied more than 30 hours of community service.

Competition

Kelly started 20 of 21 games last year and helped Ohio State advance to its first-ever NCAA Final Four and national championship game. He played short stick defensive middle and had two caused turnovers and a ground ball in a come-from-behind win in the national semifinals versus Towson. He had his 2016 season cut short due to injury but still scored five goals and handed out three assists in just four games. The year prior, he played in 15 games and scored a career-high 12 goals on his way to finishing with 20 points. He ended the season on a nine-game point streak (11G, 6A, 17 points) and was voted the co-recipient of the Paul Hartman Most Improved Player Award. As of nomination time, he had played in 52 career games and has 26 goals and 17 assists for 43 points.