OXFORD, Miss. — Chad Kelly grips the podium as he stares down two dozen journalists. The Ole Miss quarterback is about to undergo an exercise that will become very familiar over the next six months: He is going to explain his actions to a room full of strangers.
Today, it’s the media. Soon, it will be NFL teams trying to get a better read on one of the 2017 draft’s most polarizing prospects. Everything he does on the field is ripe for scrutiny; he is at times electrifying and at times infuriating. Everything he does off the field is fodder for the 24/7 college football news cycle.