A former Tennessee football great and All-American offensive tackle has died. According to Knox Today, Curtis “Chip” Kell died at the age of 75 due to “pneumonia and other complications.”
According to the article, Kell was a force to be reckoned with in the SEC. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame for his work with the Volunteers.
Kell, a sophomore all-Southeastern Conference center in 1968, went on to become an all-American guard as a junior and senior, winning the Jacobs Trophy twice as the greatest blocker in the SEC. In 2006, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
According to the University of Tennessee’s website, Kell helped his offensive line block for 2,365 yards in the 1970 season, a record at the time. Kell was also a three-time shot put champion at Tennessee.
Kell won many games with Tennessee. He would go on to play for the NFL’s San Diego Chargers. As per Knox Today:
Tennessee had a 26-5 record throughout Kell’s three seasons. The 1970 squad went 11-1, beat Air Force in the Sugar Bowl, and finished fourth in the AP poll.
San Diego selected him in the seventeenth round. He made $17,000 as a rookie. He joined the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian League. In his second season, he sustained a severe knee injury.
