So it’s no surprise the Irish duo has already broken or tied 12 school records, several of which had stood for over 20 years.
“We’ve always been a 1-2 punch since fourth grade,” said Kelly, a quarterback.
“We’ve got that unique chemistry,” said Aldridge, a wide receiver. “It’s nice to know when you’re running a route, you better be ready for the ball.”
The records, however, don’t mean as much as you’d think.
“It’s crazy,” Aldridge said. “When you’re playing you don’t really think about it. You’re only thinking about winning.”
That’s exactly what they’ll be focused on tonight when the Division VI 12th-ranked Irish (3-1) travel to D-V 18th-ranked West Liberty-Salem (4-0) in a battle of Ohio Heritage Conference unbeatens.
The Irish beat Triad 35-28 in the conference opener, but gave up 22 points in a sloppy fourth quarter.
“We are certainly going to have to play a more quality, aggressive style of ballgame than we played last week,” Central coach Steve DeWitt said. “There’s nothing secret about it: We are going to have to block and tackle better than we’ve ever done before, and those are perhaps two of the things we didn’t do so well last week.”
They’ll enter the game with the top passing offense in the area. Kelly has thrown for 1,279 yards and 17 touchdowns, completing 64 percent of his passes. Aldridge has 34 receptions for 547 yards and five TDs. In Week 3 against Northwestern, Kelly and Aldridge combined to set four single-game records — most completions, passing yards, receptions and receiving yards.
They’ve also benefitted from stellar play by receivers Brad Kelley, Dimitrious Dimitroff, Ryan Weeks and tight end Reed Buxton, and the guys blocking for them.
“We’ve got that aspect of it that really allows Jake to be a better receiver because he’s not the only target,” DeWitt said. “There’s been times where we’ve only had one guy. They’ve allowed Brian to spread the ball around.”
DeWitt said Kelly and Aldridge have made contributions since their freshman year, and have also provided great leadership.
Many of the records Kelly has broken, including the career passing yards mark, were set by his brother and former teammate, Brendan. DeWitt said the two aren’t comparable because each brings a unique style.
“He didn’t pass as much as I did,” Kelly said of Brendan, “because he had Brian Wagner in the backfield.”
While they’re happy the hard work is paying off in the form of school records, they know they’ve got a lot more things to accomplish on the field for the Irish.
“We don’t focus on the records,” Kelly said. “We just worry about getting better, progressing each week.”
School records
Catholic Central seniors Brian Kelly and Jake Aldridge have set or tied 12 school records during their careers.
Brian Kelly
Career: 359 completions, 5,159 yards, 53 touchdowns; Season: 1,882 yards; Game: 415 passing yards, 25 completions, 5 TD passes.
Jake Aldridge
Career: 167 receptions, 2,606 yards, 24 receiving TDs; Game: 15 receptions, 199 yards.
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