COLLEGE FOOTBALL: WAVERLY'S KEATHLEY SIGNS TO PLAY AT ITHACA COLLEGE (2025-01-24)

BY TIM BIRNEY
Valley Sports Report
WAVERLY — Kolsen Keathley had a lot of interest from other schools, and made several visits, but all roads kept bringing him back to Ithaca College. The Waverly senior recently signed a National Letter-of-Intent to play college football for the Bombers.

Keathley said his recruitment by Ithaca began over the summer.

"I was at a 7-on-7 camp at Chenango Forks and coach (Kerry) Grigsby, Ithaca's D-line coach, saw me, came up to my mother and I, and invited me to a camp.

"It was my first time visiting (Ithaca College), I think I played very well at the camp," he said. "The coaches loved me, I loved the environment, and the energy the coaches brought.

"The campus is beautiful, the location is beautiful ... I ended up there again for a practice, and eventually for an official visit," noted Keathley.

"It just felt right from the start," he added. "Even though I looked at other colleges, I kept coming back to Ithaca."

Keathley was also offered by Oberlin College, the University of Rochester, and Cortland. He took visits to Hobart, Utica University and Alfred University.

Keathley's road to getting on the field at Ithaca College took an unexpected turn before his commitment when he suffered a major knee injury in the Section IV championship game.

"I had surgery about six weeks ago," he said. "I tore my ACL, so I had an ACL reconstruction. The timetable for return is 8 to 9 months.

"I'm looking at being cleared Sept. 12," he noted. "It's about two weeks into the college season ... I'm hoping to play toward the middle or end of the season."

Keathley doesn't think the injury will have much impact on his preparation to play once he's cleared.

"I'd say I'm a little behind others, but I think I'll catch up nicely," he said. "I have the whole summer to work on it.

"I have another two months before I'm allowed to start running, and that's just in a straight line," added Keathley. "Around the six-month mark, I can turn it up and go full speed — jumping and cutting."

Waverly coach Jason Miller has no doubt Keathley will succeed at the next level.

"Every time we have someone go off to the next level, it's the same thing — they have to get in the weight room, they have to adjust to the speed of play, etc.

"Kolsen has a lot of the tools already, and he has such a good work ethic," said Miller.

"He's been working real hard in the weight room for two years with coach (Eric) Ryck," added Miller. "I think it's helping these guys to go to the next level and compete in practice immediately."

Miller said Ithaca is a strong Division III program, but Keathley's work ethic and abilities could help him get on the field quickly.

"I don't know what his status will be as far as getting on the field early, especially with the injury, but he has the work ethic, the athleticism and the football knowledge to get on the field sooner rather than later.

"It's incredible," said Miller. "I've been around this program for 32 years and he's the first kid to go to Ithaca. It talks about how good of a program (Ithaca) is at the Division III level, and how good it is academically.

"I'm very happy for him, and very proud of him," added Miller.

Keathley was a star on both sides of the ball for the Wolverines, and a standout on special teams as well.

What position will he play in college?

"I think I'd be able to play slot receiver or outside linebacker, but I'm leaning more toward outside linebacker," said Keathley.

"I'm also looking to long-snap as well," he added.

Miller said Ithaca is projecting him to play outside linebacker, but believes that could change once they get a look at him.

"He's so multi-faceted in what he can do, his talents and skill sets," said Miller. "He could get up there and they may want his as a slot receiver ... he really developed into a very good slot receiver the last two years, coming from where he was exclusively a running back.

"It's also possible they put him in the back end as a safety," he noted. "Personally, I think he'd make a great cornerback at the Division III level.

"Once he gets up there, and gets some reps, they'll find a position for him," added Miller.

Keathley knows he had some work to do to get ready for playing at the next level.

"I think the biggest think I need to work on at the start is putting on a little weight," he said. "Once I get to weight they want me at, I think it will just be settling into the game speed.

"I think I'm as quick as I need to be, I think I'll adapt nicely," added Keathley. "I think I just need to get some experience."

Miller agrees with his former player's assessment.

"He's going to have to put a little weight on," said Miller. "He's good in the weight room already, but his caloric input is going to have to go up. He's probably going to have to gain 15 or 20 pounds to play at the outside linebacker position, unless they utilize him in more of a 'rover' in the 4-2-5, and he's more of a pass defender.

"He has great instincts, and he has the physical tools to play at that level, but he's going to have to gain weight because run support at that level is very important," added Miller.

After playing his freshman and sophomore seasons at Athens, Keathley transferred to Waverly, and helped the Wolverines to a state title his junior season.

"The two years at Waverly were fantastic," he said. "From the moment I got to Waverly, I felt comfortable.

"The coaches treated me with respect, they didn't treat me any differently than other players," noted Keathley. "We all had the same opportunity, and that was the case in every sport — football, basketball, and track.

"The community was a huge part of it," added Keathley. "The support at games and elsewhere was amazing. It was a super-nice feeling of the whole town coming together."

————————

IN PHOTO 1: Waverly senior Kolsen Keathley. IN TOP PHOTO: Waverly senior Kolsen Keathley is flanked by his parents Mike Keathley and Lori Keathley. ... PHOTOS PROVIDED.

Print Friendly Version