Former SEC quarterback lost at sea in a kayak for 11 hours says he was ‘at the mercy of the wind’

GRAYTON BEACH, Fla. (WBRC/Gray News) – A former college quarterback who spent more than 11 hours stranded on a kayak in the Gulf of Mexico is lucky to be alive.

Chris Smelley said at about 8:30 a.m. Thursday morning, he went out for a brief fishing excursion in his kayak, not far from the Grayton Beach coast in Florida.

“I was in a big, heavy kayak. And I got out there and right off the shore, the wind was just whipping and a lot stronger than it was at shore,” Smelley said. “I wish there was a story that a giant shark dragged me out or I was battling a sea monster – but it was really just nature – it was just the wind. My body was sitting up tall and I was basically just a big sail. I was giving it everything I could, and there was a long period of time where I was at the mercy of the wind.”

When Smelley did not return within a few hours, his wife started to worry and called local law enforcement. That’s when the Walton County Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Coast Guard, and wildlife officials began an urgent search for him.

Hours passed, and as the sun was setting, Smelley saw search helicopters nearby and tried to wave at them, but he was wearing dark clothing and in a dark-colored kayak, so he wasn’t easy to spot.

Thankfully, the choppers finally spotted him. However, a friend who was using a fishing boat to help search also found Smelley and was able to reach him first.

When he was found, Smelley was about eight miles away from shore.

Smelley was brought back to land, checked out by medical staff, and reunited with his family.

Smelley said at one point, he was preparing to come to terms with reality, thinking he would be spending the night in the ocean. He even was prepared to eat raw fish for energy.

“I wouldn’t say I was necessarily scared, but there were times where, especially as the sun started going down, and I had seen the rescue helicopters fly over me pretty close by a few times, but they didn’t see me, that I thought I was going to spend the night in the ocean,” he said. “So, I had just caught a fish and was preparing to clean it to give me some energy to try to keep paddling back in when the rescue helicopter pulled in.”

Smelley doesn’t plan on giving up kayaking anytime soon, but he said he has learned to be better prepared.

“I went out with no phone and no life jacket, so I think the lesson learned … just understanding that when you’re going out in a situation like that, safety is at the top of your mind,” Smelley said.

After 11 hours at sea, amazingly, Smelley says he wasn’t dehydrated, only slightly sunburned, and never assumed the worst.

“So thankful that there was a happy ending to it. ‘Missing’ and ‘ocean’ usually don’t go together really well. It was a pretty crazy day,” he said.

The beach has always been and will always be one of his and his family’s favorite places to be.

Smelley is currently the head football coach at Sylacauga High School in Alabama. The 37-year-old also played quarterback for the University of South Carolina from 2006-2008.