Bishop Kelley Comet Has Record-Setting Hands

Originally Published: Sep 22, 2009 3:31 PM CDT

Bobby Lewis
Oklahoma Sports Reporter

TULSA, Oklahoma – As the old saying goes, ‘records are meant to be broken.’ That saying holds true for the Bishop Kelley Comets’ football program.

Decades ago, the Bishop Kelley Comets had a very talented wide receiver named John Dowdell. Dowdell set the record for receptions in a single season, a record that many Comets fans thought could never be broken.

They were wrong.

Flash forward to 2008. The Comets, again, had a very talented wide receiver on their roster. With each passing game that wideout inched closer and closer to breaking the single-season mark set by John Dowdell decades earlier. He logged games of 6 catches, 8 catches, even 9 catches in on one Friday night.

Finally, late in the fall, John’s son, senior Joe Dowdell, broke his dad’s record for catches in a season when he hauled in 52 passes.

“It’s one of the best feelings you can have,” said Bishop Kelley’s senior receiver. “He was really happy for me, that I was the one that finally broke it.”

Breaking a family record felt so nice, Joe did it again. The nine grabs he had in a single game set the mark for catches in a game by a Comet. That broke the record that was previously owned by his dad and his older brother Jack.

“I didn’t even know I was close to the record(s),” said Joe.

Now at practice, Joe not only gets to play the role of record-setting receiver but also the role of record-setting mentor. Joe’s younger brother Ned also plays receiver for the Comets and learns from Joe everyday.

“It’s nice, it’s helpful,” says the younger Dowdell. “It makes things a lot easier sometimes.”

Ned is a junior this year and doesn’t see as much of the field as older brother Joe does, but his time on the sidelines gives him a front row seat to see Joe work on Fridays. Ned is proud of what is brother has accomplished.

“It’s a lot of fun and being on the team with Joe is a lot of fun,” says Ned. “It’d be nice if I could (break his records).”

The way things have gone for the Dowdell family, no record is safe.