Riley ready to take the reins as Mercer’s starting quarterback

Kaelan Riley wasn’t going to hide it. He admitted Monday that he is nervous about Mercer’s game Thursday against Jacksonville.

And that makes sense.

John Russ has started all 46 games for Mercer since the program’s reboot in 2013, and that included the 2016 season when Riley spent his first year with the Bears as a redshirt. Riley hasn’t taken a live snap since 2015 when he was in high school at Calhoun, and his return to the field will take place in the Bears’ season opener at Five Star Stadium.

“I’m nervous, I’m pretty nervous. But my dad’s always told me that’s a good thing. He says the good ones get nervous, so I hope he’s right,” Riley said with a smile. “It’s been over a year since I’ve played football, and I just can’t wait to get back out there. I knew that John had taken every snap for what would have been four years after I got here, and the position would be a little open after that, and I just had to battle my way and kind of slide in there and take over from John.”

Riley did just that during the spring and the preseason, holding off junior Tanner Brumby for the starting spot. Riley finished his high school career at Calhoun with a 54-4 starting record and a state championship.

He ended his Calhoun career with 4,950 passing yards and 48 passing touchdowns, but head coach Bobby Lamb is ready to see how Riley adjusts to the college game.

“With Kaelan Riley, the only thing that makes you nervous about Kaelan is the words besides his name say redshirt freshman,” Lamb said. “The great thing is last spring he and Tanner Brumby were the only two quarterbacks we had. They took every snap we had for 15 days. That was big against our defense, and they have taken a majority of the snaps here since Aug. 1.

“So I think Kaelan is ready to go. He’s prepared for this moment. When we recruited him, we told him this was probably going to happen. But he’s made it happen. He’s worked hard; he’s earned it. We don’t give out anything, and he’s earned the right to be the starter against Jacksonville, and I look for some big things out of him.”

Riley is looking for big things out of the Bears’ offense, and he is ready to take the reins of that group. Riley will have weapons all over the place in Chandler Curtis, Marquise Irvin and Avery Ward at wide receiver and talented tight end Sam Walker.

And the running back corps is deep with Tee Mitchell, Alex Lakes and CJ Leggett, along with freshmen Rashad Haynes and Tyray Devezin.

“I’m very comfortable throwing the ball to everybody on the offense,” Riley said of the talent surrounding him. “I’m very comfortable with the running backs. The offensive line has had an exceptional camp, and they make me feel very comfortable. So yes, definitely, that helps me a lot.”

This story was originally published August 30, 2017 at 11:06 AM with the headline "Riley ready to take the reins as Mercer’s starting quarterback."