After a former coach filed a complaint against Kelly and the Argonauts, former Ole Miss Rebel and current Toronto Argonaut quarterback Chad Kelly was suspended by the Canadian Football League for nine games on Tuesday.
Kelly will miss Toronto’s two preseason games this year in addition to the regular season as she violated the league’s policy against gender-based violence. The revelation was initially reported by the AP on Tuesday.
Kelly will reportedly go through “confidential assessments by an independent expert” and be required to attend mandatory counseling sessions with a specialist in gender-based violence. Before the CFL considers bringing Kelly back, both of them must be finished; else, the league may alter Kelly’s ban.
The coach allegedly engaged in “a pattern of harassment by Kelly that began with unwanted romantic advances and escalated into instances of threatening language,” according to an Associated Press article the coach filed with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in March, which is when news of the case broke.
Kelly released a statement saying, “I am shocked by the allegations which have been made against me.” “I absolutely deny these events and intend to vigorously defend myself and will be seeking the dismissal of the action.”
Kelly, who played for the Rebels in 2015 and 2016 and won a Sugar Bowl under head coach Hugh Freeze at the time, was voted the CFL’s most valuable player the previous season after leading the Argonauts to a record-tying 16-2 season finale that was also good for a league-best result.