A 2000 graduate of Grand Rapids Union High School, Kelly Butler was a two-time All-City League and All-Area football player whose team won the City League championship his senior year. He was a standout basketball player at Union as well.
As a high school senior he was ranked 24th nationally among offensive linemen by Prep Football Report and went on to play at Purdue University. The 6-foot-8, 315-pound tackle started all 12 games at right tackle as a redshirt freshman. That year, the Boilermakers led the Big Ten in total offense with 452.2 yards per game and Kelly was named to the Big Ten’s All-Freshman Team. He also started every game as a sophomore and junior and finished his college career with 10 knockdowns against Georgia in the Citrus Bowl.
He was selected in the sixth round of the 2004 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions. Kelly played two seasons in the NFL with the Lions and one with the Cleveland Browns, appearing in 22 games. He also played for the Arizona Cardinals, Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz and Winnipeg Blue Bombers before retiring in 2012.
Kelly, a Lansing native, moved to Grand Rapids as a teenager following the death of his mother. Following football Kelly resided in Winnipeg and became active in the community working with youth. He also worked with the schools in Grand Rapids and Lansing on funding a project for books written by black authors.