From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
American football player (born 1957)
American football player
Gerry Ellis
|
Position:
| Running back
|
---|
|
Born:
| (
1957-11-12
)
November 12, 1957
(age 66)
Columbia, Missouri
, U.S.
|
---|
Height:
| 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
|
---|
Weight:
| 221 lb (100 kg)
|
---|
|
High school:
| Hickman
(Columbia)
|
---|
College:
| Missouri
|
---|
NFL draft:
| 1980
/ Round: 7 / Pick: 192
|
---|
|
|
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only
|
|
---|
|
|
|
---|
|
Rushing yards:
| 3,826
|
---|
Average:
| 4.6
|
---|
Touchdowns:
| 25
|
---|
|
|
Gerry Ellis
(born November 12, 1957) is an American former professional
football
player who was a
running back
for seven seasons with the
Green Bay Packers
of the
National Football League
(NFL). He played
college football
for the
Missouri Tigers
and was selected by the
Los Angeles Rams
in the
1980 NFL Draft
.
[1]
He was inducted into the
Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame
in 1994.
[2]
College career
[
edit
]
After playing high school football at
Hickman High School
in
Columbia, Missouri
,
[3]
Ellis spent his first year post-high school at
Fort Scott Junior College
.
[4]
He later played at
Missouri
, where he started at fullback but was injured midway through his senior year. He returned in time for the
1979 Hall of Fame Bowl
against
South Carolina
, where he scored a touchdown.
[5]
Professional career
[
edit
]
Ellis was drafted by the
Los Angeles Rams
in the seventh round
1980 NFL Draft
,
[6]
but was cut by the team in his first preseason and was claimed by the
Green Bay Packers
in free agency during the opening stages of the 1980 season.
[7]
After rising to starting fullback in the middle of September 1980, Ellis scored his first career NFL touchdown against the Rams.
[8]
He set Packers single-season team records for total offense by a running back and receiving yards by a running back in 1981,
[7]
accumulating more than a quarter of Green Bay's total offensive yards.
[9]
On September 30, 1984, Ellis caught a lateral from
James Lofton
as time expired against the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
, scoring a touchdown and sending the game into overtime. The Packers unfortunately lost the game in overtime.
[10]
After playing at fullback from 1980 to 1983, Ellis moved to running back before 1984.
[6]
He led the Packers in rushing in both 1983 and 1984,
[11]
and returned kicks for the Packers in 1985.
[12]
Before the 1987 season, Ellis was volunteering at a football camp for underserved youth and tore his Achilles tendon while working out, never to step on an NFL field again.
[13]
Ellis was inducted into the
Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame
in 1994.
[14]
[15]
Personal life
[
edit
]
Ellis grew up in
Columbia, Missouri
with eight siblings, where he competed in track and field and set
Central Missouri Conference
records in discus and shot put.
[16]
While attending college at the
University of Missouri
, Ellis majored in education.
[8]
He invested in real estate as a side job during his football career.
[4]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Gerry Ellis"
.
PackersNews.com
. Retrieved
February 5,
2020
.
- ^
"Packers Hall of Fame RB Gerry Ellis to join Pack Attack Monday"
.
WAOW
. Retrieved
February 5,
2020
.
- ^
Baer, Rus (May 11, 2014).
"Millard could be first NFL player from Columbia in 21 years"
.
Columbia Tribune
. Retrieved
February 19,
2020
.
- ^
a
b
Raboin, Sharon (September 7, 1986).
"Playing pro football fulfills Gerry Ellis' childhood dream"
.
Green Bay Press-Gazette
. Retrieved
March 2,
2020
.
- ^
Connelly, Bill (April 30, 2010).
"1979: A Fleeting Taste of the Big-Time (Part Three)"
.
Rock M Nation
. SB Nation
. Retrieved
February 19,
2020
.
- ^
a
b
Watson, Phil.
"Best of the Packers: Top 10 running backs since 1960"
.
Dairyland Express
. Retrieved
February 5,
2020
.
- ^
a
b
"Is Bob Schnelker serious about Gerry Ellis, or is..."
UPI
. January 14, 1983
. Retrieved
February 5,
2020
.
- ^
a
b
Kaiser, Jacqueline (October 3, 1980).
"Packers' Gerry Ellis breaks into backfield"
.
La Crosse Tribune
. Retrieved
February 21,
2020
.
- ^
Rooney, John (March 15, 1982).
"Ellis seeks improvement as a Green Bay runner"
.
Manitowoc Herald-Times
. Retrieved
February 21,
2020
.
- ^
Troup, T.J. (2009).
This Day in Football: A Day-By-Day Record of the Events That Shaped the Game
. Lanham, MD: Taylor Trade Publishing. p. 39.
ISBN
978-1-58979-452-8
. Retrieved
February 19,
2020
.
- ^
Goska, Eric (August 17, 1994).
"What's in a number?"
.
Eau Claire Leader-Telegram
. Retrieved
March 2,
2020
.
- ^
Christl, Cliff (October 14, 1985).
"Ellis gave Packers lift with return"
.
Green Bay Press-Gazette
. Retrieved
March 2,
2020
.
- ^
"Packers' Ellis may not play again"
.
The Daily Tribune
. June 7, 1987
. Retrieved
February 21,
2020
.
- ^
"Packer Hall of Fame welcomes three"
.
Green Bay Press-Gazette
. March 12, 1994
. Retrieved
March 2,
2020
.
- ^
Christl, Cliff
.
"Gerry Ellis"
.
Packers.com
.
Archived
from the original on May 31, 2023
. Retrieved
September 20,
2023
.
- ^
Anders, Mike (May 2, 1975).
"Kewpies capture CMC track title, Jays 2nd"
.
Jefferson City Post-Tribune
. Retrieved
February 19,
2020
.