If you haven't seen the indifferent-looking priest at the end of the Marquette bench during the men's basketball games, take a closer look during the next time-out.

That's where you'll see the Rev. William Kelly. He'll be the only one remaining on the bench, scribbling furiously on a clipboard.

"What I do is keep score, mostly to keep my nerves down and to keep quiet," Kelly said. "It's my way of following the game. I count the fouls and add to what the statisticians do, and then I bring it back (to the Jesuit Residence). It's my little contribution to the Jesuits, because when I get back, 10 or 11 of us get together, have a sandwich and discuss the game."

Kelly, currently in his 25th year serving as Marquette men's basketball team chaplain, has contributed a great deal more to Marquette than just box scores.

The Chicago native joined the Jesuit community at Marquette in 1961, teaching theology up until his retirement in 2000. Due to his life-long interest in sports, Kelly began traveling with the team occasionally when former chaplain Leonard Piotrowski was unavailable. When Piotrowski had to step down for health reasons, Kelly took over his responsibilities. And he hasn't relinquished them since.

"There's a letter of appointment each year," Kelly said of his position. "Mostly it's a matter of if there's any competition. There usually isn't any."

Kelly, whose commitment to the school was honored at Saturday's game against St. John's, has served at the side of nine

different men's basketball coaches, from Eddie Hickey and Al McGuire in the '60s and '70s, all the way up to Tom Crean and Buzz Williams. Despite the persistent change at the top, Kelly says his role has mostly remained the same.

"It's mostly moral support and being somewhat of a spiritual helper," Kelly said. "I'm there to be a presence and give encouragement and say some prayers at the beginning and end of games. I only got to know Buzz only a little bit last year because he was recruiting, so this year's been sort of a re-acquaintance. And they seem to accept me."

They certainly do.

"He keeps the peace in a hostile environment," senior guard Wesley Matthews said. "Sometimes I feel bad for the language I use as well as everybody else, but he's definitely a peacekeeper for us.

"I think he puts everything into perspective. Life is so much bigger than basketball and when we mourn a loss we just get so down. He sheds light on what's really important."

Junior guard and Venezuelan native David Cubillan appreciates Kelly in a different light.

"He likes to speak Spanish, so I have a good relationship with him," Cubillan said of Kelly, who also speaks French and German. "Anytime you want to talk to him he's available."

Because of his long tenure, Kelly obviously has some Marquette basketball moments that have stuck with him through the years. One includes guard Tony Miller splitting double-team after double-team to hook up with Jim McIlvaine in a 1994 NCAA Tournament victory over Kentucky. Another one wasn't so positive, as Marquette lost two games at the buzzer in back-to-back years at South Carolina in the '70s.

While Kelly has mostly kept his nerves in check for the past 25 years, he remembers one instance where the previous chaplain lost his, much to the chagrin of famed coach Al McGuire.

"(Piotrowski) and the team doctor were yelling and the ref gave them a technical," Kelly remembers. "And Al says to him, 'You can't give a technical on the chaplain! The ref said, 'Well I could give one to you, but you already have one, so you'll be out of the game.' "