By Mike Pearson
FightingIllini.com

The list of football players who've transformed into actors is a long and impressive one. Jim Brown. Bubba Smith. Alex Karras. O.J. Simpson. Merlin Olsen. And Mark Kelly.

Mark Kelly? The former Illini football player from the '80s? That Mark Kelly?

Yup, that's the one.

Okay, so Kelly hasn't yet slugged a horse to the ground like "Mongo" did in "Blazing Saddles". Nor has he stolen a scene like Bubba did as "Hightower" in "Police Academy". But give it time ... Kelly is still somewhat of a rookie thespian.

His big break came earlier this year when he had a supporting role as an FBI agent in an episode of NBC-TV's "Chicago Fire." More about that in a little bit, but first let's retrace some of Kelly's steps that led him to prime time television.

The former University of Illinois walk-on from Chicago's St. Rita High School earned varsity letters in 1985, '86 and '87 for Coach Mike White, then one more in '88 for Coach John Mackovic.

It was an October 1988 Illini victory at Ohio State, the first of five wins in a row over the Buckeyes, that Kelly remembers best.

"I was starting on special teams and also playing nickel back," he recalled. "(Defensive backs coach) Steve Bernstein had done a great job of scouting them, so he blitzed me off the edge and we had a lot of success that day."

Kelly wound up sacking Buckeye quarterback Greg Frey twice and intercepting a fumble, earning him Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors.

Following his graduation in 1989, majoring in communications and minoring in business, Kelly had eyes for a career in sports broadcasting and following the path of one of his idols, Dick Enberg. During his last semester at Illinois, he interned for Rick Zurak at WAND-TV in Decatur, serving as a local reporter.

Still, Kelly yearned to extend his football career just a little longer. So when an opportunity came to play professional football in Finland, he was eager to make the trip overseas.

"An Illini, Bob Sebring, had played there the year before," Kelly said, "so I joined Lou Campos in May of 1989 to play for former teammate Joe Skubisz, then the head coach of Vantaan Taft (in Vantaa, Finland). Lou and I were both players and assistant coaches. Being young and learning how to assimilate with people from all over the world, then travelling throughout Europe for three weeks, it was a great experience for me."

Kelly intended to continue pursuing his career in broadcasting when he returned from abroad, but those plans were altered when he began what he thought would be a temporary stint with the Chicago Board of Trade, dealing with corn options.

"It was game day every day for me in the 'pits'," he said. "With all of the hand gestures and the screaming and yelling, I describe it as organized chaos. It was our own language and our own culture."

In 2015, after trading for 25 years, Kelly noticed that the market was turning more electronic. He wanted no part of sitting in front of a computer so, during a conversation at his 50th birthday party, a friend suggested that he take acting lessons at Chicago's famed Second City.

"I absolutely loved it," he said. "It was liberating to let myself go. As a risk taker, I'm not afraid of failing or trying something new. So I took more and more acting classes at schools throughout the city."

After distributing his resume, a couple of agencies picked Kelly up. His first was a print audition for a pharmaceutical ad. Soon after came jobs as an extra for NBC's "Chicago Justice", then as a featured extra for "Chicago PD".

"My non-speaking role on PD was as a father of some pretty screwed-up kids," he chuckled.

Kelly also has ventured into industrial acting, serving in video ads for businesses and organizations such as Lincoln Navigator and Concordia University.

His biggest break was landing a speaking role last February as an FBI agent on a season six episode of "Chicago Fire", entitled "When They See Us Coming."

"The crew of 'Chicago Fire' could not have been more welcoming during my six days on the set," Kelly said. "They genuinely seem to love what they are doing. Chief Boden (Eamonn Walker) was the first to welcome me. I had a scene with Joe Minoso who plays Joe Cruz and he was just incredibly nice in helping me figure out some nuances of a scene that we were going to be in together. Joe really helped me relax."

Now, says Kelly, it's a matter of continuing to pursue auditions.

"The more I can build up my resume tapes, the more jobs I'll land," he said. "Now, I think that my confidence is opening the door for me. Reoccurring roles would be a wonderful next step."

Kelly's wife of 23 years, Jennie, and their five children—Duffy, Connor, Eva, Quinn and Lyla—remain his primary focus. Connor spent last fall as a walk-on quarterback for the Illini.

"With my wife's support, all of the kids' activities and my new career, it's an exciting time for our entire family."