Kameron Kelly ‘a ball hawk’ for the Battlehawks

The St. Louis Battlehawks enter the XFL Conference Championship Game against the San Antonio Brahmas on Sunday, June 9, as the host with a flawless record at the Dome at America’s Center.

Of all the many gladiators who thrived in the bi-weekly spectacle that is the “Battledome”, few have recently brought the 32,000+ fans to their feet like an interception by defensive back like Kameron Kelly.

“Kam has done a phenomenal job,” Battlehawks head coach Anthony Becht said.

Kelly enters the playoffs with three interceptions, two of which came in each of the previous home games. His three INTs puts him in a four-way tie for the UFL lead.

“It’s a blessing,” Kelly said. “I’m extremely excited after the crowd goes crazy but the biggest thing for me is to try to get back level-headed. I never want to get too high, I never want to get too low. So when I make a play, it’s about celebrating with my teammates and just trying to move on to the next play.”

Kelly and Becht go way back to the fleeting days of the San Diego Fleet in the Alliance of American Football in 2019. Becht was the tight ends coach in former St. Louis Rams head coach Mike Martz’s staff. He recorded four interceptions including three in a single game, one of which was returned for a touchdown.

“I saw him as a young player,” Becht said. “He’s really developed.”

The AAF folded after one season but Kelly was able to parlay his performances to the Pittsburgh Steelers that season, where he played 14 games, started one, and even intercepted a pass from Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, who went on that year to be the MVP of the NFL.

His Steelers stint ended upon being arrested in Pittsburgh on December 20, 2019, though the charges were dropped a year later.

He returned to spring football after a two-year stint in the Canadian Football League with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, including an All-Star campaign in 2022. After spending the season with the San Antonio Brahmas, Kelly was selected by the Battlehawks in the third round of the Super Draft portion of the 2024 UFL dispersal draft on January 15.

“He’s trying to fight his way back,” Becht said. “He’s a ball hawk.”

Becht said he saw the Kelly as a breakout candidate during training camp.

“He’s always around the football,” Becht said. “He may not have caught a lot of them in training camp but he figured it out by game time. He’s been a big factor.”

For what he has done this spring, and what he may potentially do in the playoffs, Kelly will likely have a chance to return to the NFL this summer in training camp. In a league where player development is key, everyone on the team is under the belief that the rising tide of success will lift all boats.

“I mean, I definitely had higher goals set for myself at the beginning of the season,” Kelly said. “As long as we’re winning, man, I just want to do it as a team. I’ll worry about the individual stuff once the season’s over and I’ll let the chips fall where they may and leave it up to God.”