Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce has established himself as the best at his position, and he's sure to be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame when he decides to hang up the cleats. The 33-year-old ranks fourth in all-time receiving yards (10,344) among tight ends, and averages more receiving yards per game (71.8) than any tight end in NFL history.
While Kelce is one of the most unique weapons in the NFL, his football career was once in doubt. As an athlete at the University of Cincinnati, Kelce was suspended for his redshirt sophomore season for a violation of team rules due to a failed drug test. During an appearance on the "Bussin' With The Boys" podcast with Taylor Lewan and Will Compton, Kelce said he partied a bit too much ahead of the 2010 Allstate Sugar Bowl in New Orleans, leading to the failed drug test.
"I got kicked out of college because of it," Kelce said. "I partied a little too much down there, got hit with a drug test and from that point on, I realized I gotta tighten the f---- up."
This story is not anything new, but what's interesting is that Kelce said the slip-up actually ended up forcing him into the tight end room. Previously, Kelce was a two-star prospect who played tight end and quarterback out of the Wildcat formation. After the suspension, he moved over to more of a traditional tight end. The violation set the table for a player who would end up changing the position altogether.
"What it did was it really kicked me into the tight end room. I was still playing QB then," Kelce said of the violation. "It was like, 'Alright, you can come walk on the team, but we don't need a quarterback. You can just be an athlete on scout team for a year, we'll figure it out.'"
Kelce caught 13 passes for 150 yards and two touchdowns for the Bearcats when he returned to the field in 2011, and then 45 passes for 722 yards and eight touchdowns in his senior season. Kelce has credited his brother and college teammate Jason Kelce for getting him back on the team.
"He went into the coaches office and talked to numerous coaches to try and give me another chance," Kelce said prior to Super Bowl LVII. "I'm forever in debt to this guy for putting his name, our name -- the Kelce name -- on the line. When I say I owe it all to him, I really do."
Kelce was eventually selected by the Chiefs in the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft.The Kelces became the first brothers to ever face off in a Super Bowl five months ago, while Travis became the first tight end in NFL history to lead the Super Bowl winner in receiving yards twice. While the suspension was undoubtedly a tough time for the brothers, it appeared to have dramatically shifted the course of the younger brother's life.
