Greg Ellis (American football)

Gregory Lemont Ellis (born August 14, 1975) is an American football coach and former player. He is the head football coach at Southwestern Assemblies of God University (SAGU) in Waxahachie, Texas, a position he has held since 2022. Ellis played professionally as a defensive end for 12 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the North Carolina Tar Heels, and was recognized as an All-American. He was selected in the first round of the 1998 NFL Draft by the Dallas Cowboys and played for the Cowboys for 11 seasons, form 1998 to 2008. He also played a season, in 2009, for the Oakland Raiders. Ellis was the head football coach at Texas College in Tyler, Texas from 2020 to 2021.

For other people of the same name, see Greg Ellis (disambiguation).

Greg Ellis
refer to caption
Ellis in 2008
SAGU Lions
Position:Head coach
Personal information
Born: (1975-08-14) August 14, 1975
Wendell, North Carolina, U.S.
Height:6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Weight:265 lb (120 kg)
Career information
High school:East Wake
(Wendell, North Carolina)
College:North Carolina
NFL Draft:1998 / Round: 1 / Pick: 8
Career history
As a player:
As a coach:
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Tackles:394
Sacks:84.0
Interceptions:4
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Ellis has also produced for television and film, including as the executive producer of the 2015 sports film Carter High.[1][2]

Early years

Ellis was born in Wendell, North Carolina. He attended East Wake High School in Wendell. He was named Male High School Athlete of the Year in 1993 by the Raleigh News and Observer.

College career

Ellis attended the University of North Carolina, and played for the North Carolina Tar Heels football team from 1994 to 1997. Ellis had four sacks a back-up defensive end during his redshirt freshman year. In 1995, he was named first-team All-ACC. Ellis was also named honorable mention All-American by UPI, while recording 71 tackles and seven sacks. As a junior, Ellis was named second-team All-American by The Sporting News and was a first-team All-ACC selection after closing the season with 62 tackles and 12.5 sacks—the second most sacks in Tar Heels history, behind Lawrence Taylor's 16 in 1979.

Professional career
Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand span40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench press
6 ft 5+1⁄4 in
(1.96 m)		 281 lb
(127 kg)		 34+5⁄8 in
(0.88 m)		 10+1⁄4 in
(0.26 m)		4.87 s1.73 s2.84 s4.48 s8.03 s35.5 in
(0.90 m)		9 ft 10 in
(3.00 m)		26 reps
All values from NFL Combine[3]

Dallas Cowboys
Ellis with Drew Bledsoe in a 2006 game.

Ellis was drafted with the eighth pick of first round in the 1998 NFL Draft by the Dallas Cowboys, a selection which caused a great stir among Dallas Cowboys fans who were disappointed that the team passed on the opportunity to take Randy Moss.[4] Although rumored to be the destination where Moss would end up, Dallas opted to take a player in Ellis who did not possess the character issues that Moss did.

He became a starter at defensive end for Dallas immediately and started 155 of 162 games during his Cowboy career from 1998-2008. For the first eight years he spent a similar amount of time as the starting right end as he did the starting left end. In 2006, he was moved to outside linebacker as Bill Parcells implemented his 3-4 defense. Ellis started 35 games and made 38 total appearances at outside linebacker from 2006-2008.

During his tenure in Dallas he totaled 77 quarterback sacks, 377 tackles, 20 forced fumbles nine fumble recoveries and four interceptions. He scored two touchdowns, both in 1999, one coming on an 87-yard interception return and the other on a 98-yard return of a fumble recovery.

Ellis's top season in quarterback sacks was 2007 when he tallied 12.5 sacks in only 13 games. Other top sack seasons were 2004 (9.0), 2003 and 2005 (8.0 each) and 1999 and 2002 (7.5 each). In 2007 Ellis was selected for the NFC Pro Bowl roster and was named the NFL Comeback Player of the Year, acknowledging his return from a season-ending Achilles tendon suffered during the 2006 campaign.

The Cowboys decided to release Ellis on June 2, 2009, saving $4.15 million in cap space.

Oakland Raiders

Ellis agreed on a 3-year contract for $10 million with the Oakland Raiders on June 15, 2009. In Oakland, Ellis returned to the position of defensive end in a 4-3 scheme. Ellis joined a Raiders line that would also include former Patriot and all-pro Richard Seymour.

Ellis started all 14 games he appeared in for the Raiders in 2009 at right defensive end. He amassed seven quarterback sacks, 26 tackles, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries. He was released on March 8, 2010.

Coaching career

In 2020, Ellis returned tp football to become the head football coach at Texas College, a historically black college (HBCU) and National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) members, located in Tyler, Texas. The 2020 season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. During the 2021 football season, the Texas College lost all of their 11 games. On March 31, 2022 it was announced that Ellis would be leaving Texas College. In June 2022, Ellis was hired as the head football coach at Southwestern Assemblies of God University in Waxahachie, Texas, a conference opponent of Texas College.[5]

Personal life

While attending East Wake High School, he met his wife, Tangie Ellis. They have three children together: Tyann, Geremiah and Taliah.

NFL career statistics

Regular season
Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
GPGSCmbSoloAstSckSftyIntYdsLngTDPDFFFRYdsTD
1998DAL 16163927123.00000001120
1999DAL 1313423667.50187871321981
2000DAL 16165239133.00000010200
2001DAL 16166045156.00000053200
2002DAL 15156851177.50100041000
2003DAL 16154935148.00000084000
2004DAL 16165944159.00000091000
2005DAL 16133525108.000000622370
2006DAL 99312474.501-1-1033000
2007DAL 13103124712.50000013000
2008DAL 16163625118.0011111010100
2009OAK 1414292547.00000012200
Career17616953140013184.004978714222111371

Head coaching record
Year Team Overall ConferenceStanding Bowl/playoffs
Texas College Steers (Sooner Athletic Conference) (2020–2021)
2020 No team
2021 Texas College 0–110–910th
Texas College: 0–110–9
SAGU Lions (Sooner Athletic Conference) (2022–present)
2022 SAGU 7–36–3T–4th
2023 SAGU 1–20–1
SAGU: 8–56–4
Total:8–16

References
  1. Pace, Lee (June 30, 2015). "My Carolina Experience: Greg Ellis". GoHeels.com. Retrieved June 19, 2020.
  2. "New film spotlights 1988 Carter football scandal". USA TODAY High School Sports. October 27, 2015. Retrieved June 19, 2020.
  3. "Greg Ellis, Combine Results, DE - North Carolina". nflcombineresults.com. Retrieved October 23, 2021.
  4. "1998 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
  5. "Ellis Has Been Hired as Southwestern Assemblies of God Coach".
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