Now, the Sooners will have to figure out how to replace him permanently.
The junior wide receiver announced Thursday that he will forego his senior year and enter the NFL Draft.
"I felt like the time was right to make this decision,” Kelly said. "My family and I have talked it over for the last few days and decided this was the way to go.”
This season, Kelly caught 49 passes for 821 yards and nine touchdowns, however, his career ended surprisingly early after he missed all but two plays of the Fiesta Bowl due to a deep thigh bruise.
Without Kelly in the lineup, the Sooner offense managed just two field goals in the first half en route to a 48-28 loss to West Virginia.
"OU and the coaches there gave me the best opportunity to reach the pro level,” Kelly said.
"Going to OU was really the thing that put me in the position to be able to make this decision.”
Kelly finishes second on the school's all-time list for career touchdown receptions with 21, nine behind his mentor, Mark Clayton, of the Baltimore Ravens.
Kelly and Clayton have talked regularly throughout the season, and Clayton was one of the former Sooners that Kelly spoke with while making his decision.
"I've talked to a lot of guys who I trust who are playing in the NFL, and I value their input,” Kelly said.
Now, Kelly will have to wait and see where he gets drafted.
Several NFL mock drafts have the 6-foot-4, 215-pound Kelly going in the first round.
On his personal draft projection, however, where scouts evaluated two of his game films, Kelly received a second-round grade.
Coming into this year, Kelly appeared to be a lock to go in the first round after catching 62 passes for 993 yards and 10 touchdowns as a sophomore.
But this year, Kelly never became the focal point of the offense as wide receiver Juaquin Iglesias led the team in receptions with 68, and tight end Jermaine Gresham led OU in touchdown catches with 11.
Against Colorado, Kelly didn't even have a pass thrown his direction and finished the game without a catch as the Sooners lost 27-24 on a late field goal.
In fact, Kelly had just two touchdown receptions after the non-conference schedule.
For those reasons, Kelly could slip down to the second round despite what is being viewed as a weak draft class for wide receivers.
"We're excited for Malcolm and his family,” Sooner coach Bob Stoops said. "He was an outstanding player in our program, and we appreciate all of his efforts. We look forward to watching him in the NFL.
"He is well-suited to professional football in many ways, and we are sure that the attributes that made him such a success for us will serve him equally well on that level.”
Even though Kelly didn't have a huge year statistically, he won't easily be replaced.
His presence alone dictated how opposing teams defended the Sooners the past two years.
Because Kelly had the ability to stretch defenses vertically and command double-teams, teammates such as Iglesias and Gresham regularly found themselves uncovered.
The favorite to replace Kelly likely will be 6-foot-5, 204-pound senior-to-be Quentin Chaney, who had a career game in the Fiesta Bowl in place of Kelly by catching four passes for 129 yards and a touchdown.
Despite posting a banner performance in last year's Fiesta Bowl (four catches for 37 yards and one touchdown), Chaney has been quiet during the regular season.
Going into the Fiesta Bowl, Chaney had just four catches combined this season, with his lone touchdown grab coming in the season-finale against Oklahoma State.
Stoops and the Sooner coaches will be looking for Chaney to prove he can be an every-game player.
Junior-to-be Adron Tennell, who will spend this spring rehabbing from torn knee ligaments, could also make a run as Kelly's replacement.
Redshirting freshman Tyler Stradford, (6-foot-1, 175 pounds) arguably the fastest player on the team, could also push for the starting job.
Junior linebacker Curtis Lofton, cornerback Reggie Smith, guard Duke Robinson, offensive tackle Phil Loadholt and safety Nic Harris are considering joining Kelly and leaving for the NFL, but they have yet to reveal their decisions.
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Kelly, Smith, Loadholt pack it and try your shots at the NFL. Kelly and Smith, hope they can make it in the paycheck world when you have to work or in their case play with pain or sickness. I wonder how forgive their organizations and fans will be with the 5-week broken toe and bruised thigh excuses, when the game and season is on the line. Loadholt will definitely need to work on his hear the signal calling or not many are going to appreciate his penalties.
Loser, your a quite on his team don't believe the thigh bruise he was saving himself for the NFL. Look at Adrian Peterson he had more reason to skip out on the bowl game last year, he had more to lose then anyone you can think of and he still played. SO see see ya kelly
Yep, Malcolm, good luck to you, and thanks for the big plays.
As to the "playcalling" argument. I think it's a bit of a misnomer. What a lot of critics are really complaining about are two things: the offensive scheme, and then actual play calls within that scheme.
It's Wilson's scheme, the personnel groupings, etc., that is simplistic. Yes, theoretically, if every player does his job on a given play, then it should succeed. My criticism has been that OU's offense is not that difficult to defend, from a scheme standpoint. One week's preparation, that's one thing. A month? It's too easy to scheme against, and if the defense executes, the defense wins, at least enough to keep OU from exploding. OU isn't coming into bowl games with enough wrinkles, changes, to confuse opposing defenses and pull them off their plan. USC was waiting for everything we ran. Meanwhile, OU's defense is facing more exotic schemes, which generate more confusion, more isolation, more busts.
You'll hear OU coaches say: They didn't do anything we hadn't seen. But seeing isn't the same as stopping. And the more defensive players have to think, the more isolated they are, etc., the more chance for an offense to succeed. Our scheme is not succeeding in big games at creating the matchups we want.
Then playcalling comes into the equation. Some coaches are better than others at knowing/feeling what to call and when, establishing a rhythm and keeping a defense off-balance, on its heels. This is Wilson's other weakness. He just doesn't seem to have many alternatives when Plan A isn't working. And then he does odd things, like decide to run right, when the defense has yet to stop run left. If something's working, you keep doing it until they stop you. Wilson outsmarts himself (thinking he's going to trick the defense, I guess), and stops going to what's working.
You look at the things other teams are throwing at us, and you'll see one or two targeted, go-to guys getting open and getting the ball all game long.
My basic criticism is that if Gary Pinkel can go to his tight end all night, there's no reason OU shouldn't be able to do the same with Gresham, or Kelly, for that matter. Plus, this points out that these coaches know their go-to guys, and build schemes to get them the ball. OU's offense, for example, should've featured getting Murry the ball. And if Murray is in all kinds of different sets, and if OU throws and runs out of all kinds of different sets, it becomes easier to get the matchups you want.
Wilson appears to want to be able to just hammer teams into submission, but the line OU has built is ill-suited for that. They don't blow people off the ball, and they don't open a lot of interior holes. Murray was the best back because he was the best improviser. Wilson seems unwilling to admit that his line can't do what he wants them to do.
It's not rocket science, and your average coach is not a genius. Sure, lots of fans level criticism in the wrong places, but most of them are just as smart as the coaches.
And, yes, no matter the scheme, if you don't execute, it ain't going to look good.
Hit the weights, Malcolm. Bulking up will help prevent injuries and help from having no presence. Wish him well, still looks a bit skinny to think of Rodney Harrison on a slant,OUCH!! Can't Sooner fans just all get along,come on guys, it's embarrassing!
I saw every play of every game. So you are telling me that if the defense stops the run you should quit running? Your offensive philosophy is dont run the ball, force it to Kelly, if he is double covered, force it to someone else. Brilliant. So if Kelly is double covered you still have to establish if the defense is playing man or zone or a combination of the 2. If they are in zone you have to figure out if it is cover 1, cover 2, cover 3 or cover 4. Watch out for a blitz from the outside though, that could wreck this play. Most defenses will use all of these looks and often show one thing and do another. As a coordinator you run plays that you THINK will work. The opposing defense will do their best to stop it, sometimes they do, sometimes they dont. We had a top 5 scoring offense in the nation! You people think we ought to roll up 500 yards on everyone we play and they should roll over and die for mighty OU. Thats just not realistic. You all think OU is so much more talented than these other teams based on what recruiting gurus say but everyone has good players. OU is the best team in the big 12, it just seems like the players will take a mental vacation during the game and they make bad mistakes that kill drives. Penalties, turnovers, poor passes, dropped passes, etc. That is where the coaches need to work, mental preparation.
I wish Wilson would go with him. Stoops needs to make the move. Just my humble opinion, he may be a great person but I would hate to face a team that has our talent. The fact that doesn't scare other teams scares me.
Willard, you know nothing. Watch the game again. Iglesias should have had a big game, but instead became the goat. Bobbled two passes that were intercepted, and I believe he had a fumble too. Turnovers will kill any offense. The problem at Colorado was execution, not playcalling, which is usually the case for most teams that struggle. Penalties have been a problem all year too. Especially in the offensive line. Now, that is a coaching issue. But playcalling is not the problem
It goes to show you that in the Colorado game they couldn't get Kelly the ball that tells you the offensive coordinator can't do his job. If he is double covered the other receivers should have a big game. On defense they made Colorado look like a top ten team. We need new coordinators.
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As to the "playcalling" argument. I think it's a bit of a misnomer. What a lot of critics are really complaining about are two things: the offensive scheme, and then actual play calls within that scheme.
It's Wilson's scheme, the personnel groupings, etc., that is simplistic. Yes, theoretically, if every player does his job on a given play, then it should succeed. My criticism has been that OU's offense is not that difficult to defend, from a scheme standpoint. One week's preparation, that's one thing. A month? It's too easy to scheme against, and if the defense executes, the defense wins, at least enough to keep OU from exploding. OU isn't coming into bowl games with enough wrinkles, changes, to confuse opposing defenses and pull them off their plan. USC was waiting for everything we ran. Meanwhile, OU's defense is facing more exotic schemes, which generate more confusion, more isolation, more busts.
You'll hear OU coaches say: They didn't do anything we hadn't seen. But seeing isn't the same as stopping. And the more defensive players have to think, the more isolated they are, etc., the more chance for an offense to succeed. Our scheme is not succeeding in big games at creating the matchups we want.
Then playcalling comes into the equation. Some coaches are better than others at knowing/feeling what to call and when, establishing a rhythm and keeping a defense off-balance, on its heels. This is Wilson's other weakness. He just doesn't seem to have many alternatives when Plan A isn't working. And then he does odd things, like decide to run right, when the defense has yet to stop run left. If something's working, you keep doing it until they stop you. Wilson outsmarts himself (thinking he's going to trick the defense, I guess), and stops going to what's working.
You look at the things other teams are throwing at us, and you'll see one or two targeted, go-to guys getting open and getting the ball all game long.
My basic criticism is that if Gary Pinkel can go to his tight end all night, there's no reason OU shouldn't be able to do the same with Gresham, or Kelly, for that matter. Plus, this points out that these coaches know their go-to guys, and build schemes to get them the ball. OU's offense, for example, should've featured getting Murry the ball. And if Murray is in all kinds of different sets, and if OU throws and runs out of all kinds of different sets, it becomes easier to get the matchups you want.
Wilson appears to want to be able to just hammer teams into submission, but the line OU has built is ill-suited for that. They don't blow people off the ball, and they don't open a lot of interior holes. Murray was the best back because he was the best improviser. Wilson seems unwilling to admit that his line can't do what he wants them to do.
It's not rocket science, and your average coach is not a genius. Sure, lots of fans level criticism in the wrong places, but most of them are just as smart as the coaches.
And, yes, no matter the scheme, if you don't execute, it ain't going to look good.