Twenty-eight years ago, these eyes saw future Alcorn State and NFL standout Steve McNair boost tiny Mount Olive to a state championship victory. “Steven McNair, remember that name,” my column ended.

This afternoon I saw 15-year-old Ty Keyes lead Taylorsville to a 41-26 victory over Winona for the State Class 2A title.

Ty Keyes, remember that name.

Keyes, a long-limbed, 6-foot-1, 160-pound ninth grader, completed 18 of 25 throws for 333 yards and three touchdowns against a Winona defense that was geared to stop him.

“I had seen him on film, so I knew what we were up against,” Winona coach Joey Tompkins said. “He’s a freak. We knew the only chance we had was to get to him before he had time to throw and we just couldn’t get there.

“I’m telling you, man, that kid can spin it.”

Taylorsville capped a 15-1 season by out-scoring Winona 27-13 in the second half. During that 16-game season, Keyes has grown two inches in height and even more as a leader and in confidence.

We can all be glad we’re not buying his pants.

“He’s come a long, long way and he was good to begin with. He’s not a freshman anymore,” Taylorsville coach Chuck Robertson said. “He’s a winner. He’s a great kid. He was the hardest working kid I had in our summer program. He’s just a winner.”

Keys can spin it. He throws a tight spiral and he can throw a 15-to-20-yard dart, or an accurate 55-yard “bomb” that hits his receiver in stride.

When he takes his helmet off, he looks like a 15-year-old kid, not old enough to drive. But when he puts the helmet on and drops into the pocket to pass, he looks like he has been playing this game for decades. He was born in 2002.

Robertson saw Keyes for the first time when the youngster was between the seventh and eighth grades. Robertson never dreamed the baby-faced kid would throw for nearly 5,000 yards not quite two years later.

“I really didn’t think much of him at all then,” Robertson said. “He wasn’t even 5-8.”

Keyes, who also excels in basketball and baseball, says he hopes to grow to be 6-3 or 6-4. At his current rate, he might grow even taller.

The kid didn’t lack for help either. Tycarius Roberts, a shifty, speedy running back, rushed for 146 yards and three touchdowns on 18 carries. Both Roberts and Keyes were the beneficiaries of dominant blocking from the line.

“I’ve got great receivers, too,” said Keyes, who hit seven different receivers with passes, including four who had three catches or more. Letreal Jones, a junior, snagged three for 88 yards and a touchdown.

That said, there was no doubt who was running the show on the field. Ty Keyes: Remember the name.

X

Republish this article

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Unless otherwise noted, you can republish most of Mississippi Today’s stories for free under a Creative Commons license. For digital publications:

• Look for the "Republish This Story" button underneath each story. To republish online, simply click the button, copy the html code and paste into your Content Management System (CMS).
• Editorial cartoons and photo essays are not included under the Creative Commons license and therefore do not have the "Republish This Story" button option. To learn more about our cartoon syndication services, click here.
• You can’t edit our stories, except to reflect relative changes in time, location and editorial style.
• You can’t sell or syndicate our stories.
• Any web site our stories appear on must include a contact for your organization.
• If you share our stories on social media, please tag us in your posts using @MSTODAYnews on Facebook and @MSTODAYnews on Twitter.

For print publications:

• You have to credit Mississippi Today. We prefer “Author Name, Mississippi Today” in the byline. If you’re not able to add the byline, please include a line at the top of the story that reads: “This story was originally published by Mississippi Today” and include our website, mississippitoday.org.
• You can’t edit our stories, except to reflect relative changes in time, location and editorial style.
• You cannot republish our editorial cartoons, photographs, illustrations or graphics without specific permission (contact our managing editor Kayleigh Skinner for more information). To learn more about our cartoon syndication services, click here.
• Our stories may appear on pages with ads, but not ads specifically sold against our stories.
• You can’t sell or syndicate our stories.
• You can only publish select stories individually — not as a collection.
• Any web site our stories appear on must include a contact for your organization.
• If you share our stories on social media, please tag us in your posts using @MSTODAYnews on Facebook and @MSTODAYnews on Twitter.

If you have any other questions, contact Audience Development Director Lauchlin Fields.

Ty Keyes: Bound to be well known beyond Taylorsville

by Rick Cleveland, Mississippi Today
December 1, 2017

<h1>Ty Keyes: Bound to be well known beyond Taylorsville</h1> <p class="byline">by Rick Cleveland, Mississippi Today <br />December 1, 2017</p> <p>Twenty-eight years ago, these eyes saw future Alcorn State and NFL standout Steve McNair boost tiny Mount Olive to a state championship victory. “Steven McNair, remember that name,” my column ended.</p> <p>This afternoon I saw 15-year-old Ty Keyes lead Taylorsville to a 41-26 victory over Winona for the State Class 2A title.</p> <p>Ty Keyes, remember that name.</p> <p>Keyes, a long-limbed, 6-foot-1, 160-pound ninth grader, completed 18 of 25 throws for 333 yards and three touchdowns against a Winona defense that was geared to stop him.</p> <p>“I had seen him on film, so I knew what we were up against,” Winona coach Joey Tompkins said. “He’s a freak. We knew the only chance we had was to get to him before he had time to throw and we just couldn’t get there.</p> <p>“I’m telling you, man, that kid can spin it.”</p> <p>Taylorsville capped a 15-1 season by out-scoring Winona 27-13 in the second half. During that 16-game season, Keyes has grown two inches in height and even more as a leader and in confidence.</p> <p>We can all be glad we’re not buying his pants.</p> <p>“He’s come a long, long way and he was good to begin with. He’s not a freshman anymore,” Taylorsville coach Chuck Robertson said. “He’s a winner. He’s a great kid. He was the hardest working kid I had in our summer program. He’s just a winner.”</p> <p>Keys can spin it. He throws a tight spiral and he can throw a 15-to-20-yard dart, or an accurate 55-yard “bomb” that hits his receiver in stride.</p> <p>When he takes his helmet off, he looks like a 15-year-old kid, not old enough to drive. But when he puts the helmet on and drops into the pocket to pass, he looks like he has been playing this game for decades. He was born in 2002.</p> <p>Robertson saw Keyes for the first time when the youngster was between the seventh and eighth grades. Robertson never dreamed the baby-faced kid would throw for nearly 5,000 yards not quite two years later.</p> <p>“I really didn’t think much of him at all then,” Robertson said. “He wasn’t even 5-8.”</p> <p>Keyes, who also excels in basketball and baseball, says he hopes to grow to be 6-3 or 6-4. At his current rate, he might grow even taller.</p> <p>The kid didn’t lack for help either. Tycarius Roberts, a shifty, speedy running back, rushed for 146 yards and three touchdowns on 18 carries. Both Roberts and Keyes were the beneficiaries of dominant blocking from the line.</p> <p>“I’ve got great receivers, too,” said Keyes, who hit seven different receivers with passes, including four who had three catches or more. Letreal Jones, a junior, snagged three for 88 yards and a touchdown.</p> <p>That said, there was no doubt who was running the show on the field. Ty Keyes: Remember the name.</p> <p>This <a target="_blank" href="https://mississippitoday.org/2017/12/01/ty-keyes-bound-to-be-well-known-beyond-taylorsville/">article</a> first appeared on <a target="_blank" href="https://mississippitoday.org">Mississippi Today</a> and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.<img src="https://i0.wp.com/mississippitoday.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/MT_square-thumb.jpg?fit=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1" style="width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;"><img id="republication-tracker-tool-source" src="https://mississippitoday.org/?republication-pixel=true&post=113331&ga=UA-75003810-1" style="width:1px;height:1px;"></p>

1