TC Celtic Touchdown Club

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Happy Birthday Kerwin! From all the Celtics at Trinity Catholic High School

Happy 60th birthday to former University of Florida quarterback Kerwin Bell. Bell and Wayne Peace are the only Gator quarterbacks to start against the Miami Hurricanes all 4 years of college. He was 1-3 against Miami. However, one of his finest moments came in a 35-23 victory over the Canes in front of a then record crowd of 80,277 at the Orange Bowl in 1985. Bell completed 20 of 28 passes for 248 yards and 4 touchdowns, including clutch 4th quarter touchdown passes to Ricky Nattiel and Frankie Neal.

A native of tiny Mayo, FL, (population 1,237), Bell came to UF as a walk-on. Despite leading Lafayette High School to a Class 1A state title as a junior, his only scholarship offer was from Valdosta State. When he arrived on the Gainesville campus, he was 7th string on the depth chart. He started to catch the attention of the coaching staff as a member of the scout team as a true freshman in 1983. His stellar play helped him rise up the depth chart. Less than 2 weeks before the team's 1984 season opener against Miami at Tampa Stadium, projected starter Dale Dorminey from Hialeah High School went down with a season ending injury. Another highly touted quarterback Derrick Crudup had transferred to Oklahoma. Bell took over as starter and never looked back.

After a fine college career, Bell was selected in the 7th round of the 1988 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins. After spending one season with the Dolphins practice squad, Bell played 13 years of professional football in the NFL, World League of American Football and the CFL. Since his playing career, he has gone on to coach at the high school, college and professional levels, including head coaching stints at Ocala Trinity Catholic High School (2002-2006), Jacksonville University (2007-2015) and Valdosta State (2016-2018). Bell is currently the head coach at Western Carolina.