Brian Kelley (American football)

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Brian Lee Kelley (born September 1, 1951) is an American former professional football player who spent his entire career as a linebacker for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL) from 1973 to 1983. He was selected by the Giants in the 14th round of the 1973 NFL draft.

Kelley grew up in Fullerton, California, where he was an outstanding athlete at Sunny Hills High School. He attended California Lutheran University, a National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) member and played college football. Cal Lutheran won the NAIA National Championship in Kelley's junior year, but in his senior year, they lost, even though Kelley was named MVP of the championship game. He was also honored as a little All-American.^[1] On May 11, 2010, Kelley was elected into the College Football Hall of Fame.

As a member of the Giants, Kelley was one of the Crunch Bunch, a team of fierce linebackers composed of Kelley, Brad Van Pelt, Lawrence Taylor, and Harry Carson. The group is widely considered one of the best linebacking combos in NFL history.^[2][3]