Harry "Machine Gun" Kelly was the only player in the history of the NCAA to score over 3,000 points and grab over 1,000 rebounds. The Jackson, Mississippi native led the NCAA in scoring two of his four years at TSU, and led the team to two, 20-win seasons (1981 and 1982). Kelly was one of just nine men to lead the nation in scoring average in multiple seasons, averaging 29.7 points in 1981-82 and 28.8 and 1982-83 for Texas Southern, but he also had 1,085 rebounds to go with 3,066 points, 218 assists, 66 blocked shots and 113 steals from 1979 through 1983.

Kelly's number (43), was retired in the spring of 1983 and was drafted by the Atlanta Hawks.