High School Coach Remembers Life of Mason Alexander Full of ‘Energy and Enthusiasm’

When life is taken too early, it hits the parents, loved ones and the community surrounding that person terribly hard. Those close to Pitt football cornerback and Hamilton Southeastern grad Mason Alexander are dealing with the raw emotions of his unfathomable death.

For Hamilton Southeastern head football coach Michael Kelly, he too is coping with the loss of a football player that he watched grow from a young high schooler to a man that was off to play Division I football full of energy and life.

“He was an unbelievable character. He had a tremendous personality that brought energy and enthusiasm to wherever he was. Great, tremendous athlete, but more importantly a better person. He’s sorely missed already. His presence is something that lights up a room when he walks into it and made it better,” Kelly told Pittsburgh Sports Now.

In loving memory of a cherished son, friend and teammate. pic.twitter.com/UyOE73IEAy

— Pitt Football (@Pitt_FB) March 2, 2025

Kelly, who finished his fifth season with the Royals this fall, has been alongside Alexander since the start of his tenure and watched the athlete blossom over the years.

“As a freshman, my first time meeting him we were in the midst of dealing with all the changes. Couldn’t really meet him as a junior high guy. My first year was his freshman year. We practiced separately. My first experience was watching him play in a freshman game when he was going against one of the better athlete in the conference and was extremely physical in that game.

“At first, I think he had to be talked into playing football a little bit, but immediately you saw that talent he was capable of having. He grew exponentially over the next two years and then this year was a phenomenal player for us. That was all in part due to his growth and development. You can’t teach his speed he had. He was extremely fast athlete that was physical, but he loved to hit. That was one thing that stood out as a freshman and continued to grow.”

Despite not having any captains last season, Alexander, 18, was still a leader in many ways for the Royals. In one specific moment Kelly recalled, he brought a reaffirming sense to the sideline.

“Last year, we were in the middle of one of our more challenging games at the end of the year and there was a questionable call and I was going nuts on the sideline. Mason and all of his character came up to me and said, ‘Coach Kelly, I got you, I got you. Chill, man, I got you.’ He proceeds to go and take a touchdown back 96 yards on the kick return and he come back to the sidelines and was like, ‘I told you.’ That type of personality that the moment was never too big. He was light-hearted all the time and he just had fun and was a fun guy to be around,” Kelly said.

With the shocking news already difficult enough, Kelly also feels for Alexander’s mother, Kelly Harris. The mother-son duo were as tight-nit as any, especially after Alexander lost his father, Johnny, at the age of 8.

“His mom, as you would say, was his rock. She was a solid foundation. She is strong. The two of them were very close, so this is going to be extremely hard for his mother,” Kelly said.

Hamilton Southeastern High School and the Fishers, Ind. community continues to mourn the loss of Alexander as there will be a balloon release at the football field Monday at 5:15 p.m.