Ohio State QB’s Wife Gets Baptized 3 Years After Coming Out of Atheism; Husband Shares 2-Word Message

Eli Brickhandler has barely unpacked his bags in Columbus, yet the new Buckeye quarterback is already turning heads. The former Houston Christian Husky (an FCS school) joined Ohio State in July 2025 in a CFB journey that began at North Carolina A&T. But as much as Ohio State fans are curious about what he’d do under center, the story that stole the weekend belonged to the person cheering loudest for him.

That would be Eli’s wife, Sean Kelly Brickhandler, who shared a deeply personal milestone on Instagram: her baptism. In the video, Sean Kelly steps into the water, surrounded by friends and family, before being submerged and lifted back up, beaming, wiping tears, and hugging Eli. For the Brickhandlers, the plunge was the latest chapter in a faith journey that has woven itself through every big decision of their young marriage, including Eli’s transfer to Ohio State.

“The feeling of having Jesus in your heart is like no other. You cannot live both in the world and with Christ,” Sean Kelly wrote in the caption of her IG post. She recalled a time, three years ago, when life felt empty and directionless. “Someone who felt so ashamed… I truly believed I was not deserving of having a life filled with joy, peace, love, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”

Sean’s words painted a picture of a woman rescued from despair. “3 years ago, I lived where God’s spirit wasn’t felt. Living in a city alone where it truly felt like an evil spirit was lurking and on my shoulders weighing me down,” she said. 

She doubled down in the same post, urging followers to “run as fast as you can toward Jesus.” Citing Proverbs 1:30 and 1 John 4:1, Sean Kelly warned about “choking on [our] own schemes” when we ignore divine wisdom. In her view, only the Holy Spirit can fill the void left by anxiety, fear, and the other “fruits” of living life on our own terms. The baptism, then, wasn’t the end of her testimony but a new starting line as proof that she believes, “It is not too late to be saved and declare Jesus as the Son of God.”

Faith is hardly new territory for the couple. Eli and Sean Kelly got married in May 2024, welcomed their first child soon after, and have navigated everything, from the QB’s transfer portal odyssey to her candid conversations about postpartum struggle, under the banner of shared belief. She’s used Instagram to celebrate the highs when Eli transferred to Ohio, as she wrote, “Congrats, baby, Ohio is home ❤️,” and process the lows, always circling back to gratitude and grace.

Moments after Sean Kelly’s baptism clip went live, Eli reposted it to his own story and added a simple, exuberant shout-out: “Go Wifey!!!!” The four exclamation points said enough; this was as much his victory lap as hers. In their family’s locker room, faith often fuels pregame rituals and post-game speeches. And Eli’s reaction echoed how central these convictions are to the Brickhandlers’ identity.

“Once again, if we cannot walk ourselves he CARRIES US,” Sean Kelly wrote, a line that now resonates inside Ohio Stadium as well. The quarterback may spend Saturdays reading defenses, but off the field, he and his wife are reading scripture, framing every new Buckeye chapter as part of a larger calling.