Calijah Kancey has over 200 tackles for Miami Northwestern as he helped the team to two straight state titles. He then left for Pittsburgh, where he redshirted during the 2019 season. He played in 11 games during the 2020 COVID season, starting the final four games of the year and earning some Freshman All-American honors. He kept up the pace as a sophomore in 2021, earning All-ACC first-team and AP All-American third-team honors. Kancey is majoring in administration of justice. He is the son of Schquinina Smith.