2009 OUTLOOK
A two-sport hopeful who is giving football a shot in his last year of eligibility ... Is a 2009 national champion heavyweight wrestler for Mizzou, who decided this past winter to pursue his dream of playing football for his homestate school ... Walked on the football team for spring practice and had a solid spring camp playing defensive end, and is determined to make the team when fall camp rolls around ... Has one year of football eligibility, as well as wrestling eligibility, and he plans to try them both ... Is best friends with former Tiger All-American tight end and 2008 Mackey Award Winner Chase Coffman, as they grew up and played sports together in Peculiar, Mo. ... At Mizzou, roomed with two-time NCAA wrestling champion Ben Askren, and credits Askren's championship attitude for the success he's enjoyed on the mat.
MIZZOU WRESTLING
Won the NCAA Championship in the heavyweight division, becoming Mizzou's first-ever heavyweight national champ (and only the second Tiger ever to win an NCAA wrestling title), when he claimed a 3-2 sudden-death overtime win over 5th-ranked Konrad Dudziak of Duke in the title bout to improve to 31-3 on the season ... Also qualified for the NCAA Championships in each of his first two seasons, becoming the first MU heavyweight to reach the national meet in consecutive years since 1995 ... Has a 90-36 career record, including results from a redshirt season that saw him go 22-9 wrestling unattached in open tournaments ... His 2009 individual title helped the Tigers place 7th as a team at the NCAA Championships, one of MU's highest-ever team showings there.
HIGH SCHOOL
A two-sport standout at Raymore-Peculiar High School, Ellis was a 1st-Team All-Conference defensive end for Ray-Pec, and helped the school to the 2004 Missouri Class 5 state football championship, with a 37-18 win in the title game over McCluer North ... Had 6 tackles, 1 quarterback sack and a pass broken up in the game ... On the mat, helped the Panthers wrestling team to two second-place finishes at the Missouri State Championships ... wrestling at 215 pounds for Head Coach Paul Barbarick, Ellis earned the Missouri State title as a senior (2005) ... Competing at the Brut-Adidas Folkstyle Nationals as a junior (2004) and the National High School Coaches Association as a senior, Ellis earned recognition as a two-time All-American ... High school coach - Tom Kruse.
PERSONAL
Parents - Mark & Colleen Ellis ... The second of four children, Ellis has two sisters, Johnna (25) an assistant women's basketball coach at Henderson State University in Arkansas, and Julia (21) and a brother, Dakota (15).
