All Landon Ellis wants is a chance to play football.
After nearly making the East Mississippi Community College football team in 2011, Ellis prepared himself to take the next step and to help the Lions win another NJCAA national title in 2012.
But a torn labrum Ellis suffered in the spring sidetracked his road back to the field. When he was finally cleared to play, it didn’t take long for another path to open up for the former Victory Christian School standout. When it did, Ellis didn’t hesitate to jump at the chance.
Instead of playing football this season in Scooba, Ellis will get a chance to make his mark at Faulkner University, a private Christian university in Montgomery, Ala. Ellis left Mississippi on Saturday to move in and to take what he hopes is the first step of a successful career at the four-year NAIA school.
“It was a very last-minute thing,” Ellis said. “The injury set me back and EMCC was bringing in a lot of new players off their national championship. (Former Victory Christian teammate) Jay Pace signed up here, and his dad (Bill) mentioned my name to (coach Brent Barker) and told him my situation and said I was looking for a place to play. It worked out from there.”
The whirlwind recruiting process involved several telephone calls and plenty of word of mouth from Bill Pace and Victory Christian coach Chris Hamm. Barker said he saw a highlight package of Ellis’ exploits at Victory Christian, which plays eight-man football, and of his work at EMCC. He feels Ellis has the speed and the skills to fit into the Eagles’ high-powered offense.
“I talked with Mr Pace and he said how good of an athlete Landon was and he explained his situation at Scooba and that he may be looking to go somewhere,” Barker said. “He runs good routes and is a good possession receiver. I think he can be in the mix at Faulkner.”
Barker is in his first year as head coach after serving as the school’s baseball coach and as its athletic director. He takes over for Gregg Baker, who led the team to a 3-7 finish last season. Faulkner had a losing record despite leading the nation in total offense (44 points, 520 yards per game). The Eagles allowed 53 points per game. Faulkner defeated Union College 95-89 in triple overtime in its final game of 2011.
Barker said Faulkner will continue to throw the football 50-60 times with junior quarterback Josh Hollingsworth, a former Mississippi State University signee, and will use plenty of three- and four-receiver sets. With that many chances to score, Barker said Ellis’ versatility will give him an opportunity to earn playing time.
“We have a number of players like that who can line up in the backfield and catch the ball in open space and try to make plays,” Barker said. “We will have to wait and see with Landon.”
The good thing for Ellis is Barker said Faulkner has a varsity and a junior varsity team. Barker said both squads will carry about 70 players, which provides plenty of chances for players. Barker said Faulkner will redshirt 30-40 players this season. With 100 freshmen, including Pace and former Pickens County High School standouts De’Marko Hall and Keith Hall, expected to participate Monday in the first day of training camp, there figures to be a lot of competition.
That doesn’t faze Ellis, who has overcome the stigma of playing eight-man football at a small school and of being a redshirt. He showed at Victory Christian that he could be an impact player, rushing for a team-high 1,152 yards and 20 touchdowns as a senior. He also caught 19 passes for nine touchdowns and had 53 tackles (42 solo) to help Victory Christian reach the Christian Football Association title game.
While he would have loved to have gotten another chance at EMCC, Ellis said he couldn’t pass up the chance at Faulkner because he eventually was going to have to transfer to a four-year school anyway.
“EMCC gave me a once-in-a-lifetime advantage to travel, to get a national championship ring, and I got to play against several people on that 2011 team who are going to be in the NFL some day,” Ellis said. “I enjoyed getting to play against those guys and to work out with those guys, who were some of the best athletes in Mississippi. I appreciate Scooba a lot for giving me the time and that experience to let me train with those guys. It has prepared me to play like a college player. I will always be grateful because of that.”
Ellis, who is fully recovered from the surgery to repair his labrum and what he called a “loose collarbone,” will join former EMCC teammate Hamp Glover, of Meridian, at Faulkner. He said he didn’t get a chance to visit the school but heard a lot of great things about it. He hopes he will have plenty of positive things to say about his football experience, too, even if he has to move to another position to get playing time.
“I was complete expecting to go back to Scooba until the very last minute,” said Ellis, who will have four years of eligibility. “I didn’t think (going to Faulkner) could be a bad decision at all. As soon as he gave me a scholarship offer I bit.
“If I go in and put on my ‘A’ game then I can get playing time right away. That is the plan anyway. If not, I am just a freshman, so I have time to learn things and to get into a groove.”
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 41 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.