*Came across a pre draft piece I hadn't seen.
http://www.nfl.com/draft/story/8269532
Ellison ready to get onto someone's radar
By Bob Elliott
NFL.com
Weaknesses: Plays too high at times and really needs to work on and refine his technique ... Could stand to add some weight ... Needs to continue to get stronger ... Very limited in terms of his pass-rush repertoire ... A bit raw and not a finished product.
-- Profile on former Missouri defensive tackle Atiyyah Ellison, NFLdraftcountdown.com
11, 2005) --
Most football players aspiring to play in the NFL wouldn't take an evaluation like that too kindly. But Atiyyah Ellison doesn't see any harm in it.
"I think being raw is an upside," Ellison said. "I'm still learning a lot about football, and once I'm in a system and I can learn from those guys, I think I've got a tremendous upside."
Several NFL talent evaluators seem to agree with him. During his week of Senior Bowl practices in late January, at least 20 teams interviewed him. Another draft website says he might be "the least known player who is projected to go on Day 1."
Ellison's anonymity and lack of experience can be mostly explained due to circumstances, and partly because of his upbringing.
Naturally, Ellison, now 6-3¾ and 305 pounds, was bigger than most of his friends growing up. But his mother forbade him from playing organized football until his freshman year in high school.
"I always wanted to play because my peers were playing growing up, but my mom wouldn't let me play because they did it by weight at that age, and I would have had to play (against older kids)," Ellison explained. "She didn't like that."
After earning all-state honors as a defensive end at Parkway South High School in suburban St. Louis, Ellison wanted to attend Missouri -- "I didn't even entertain any other schools" -- but didn't have the grades to get in. So he went to Coffeyville Community College in Kansas, where he played during the 2001 season.
He entered Missouri the next year. Even though the coaches there had projected him as a tackle, the Tigers were thin at end and had Keith Wright at tackle, whom the Houston Texans would draft in 2003.
"I had the opportunity to start most of those games, so I didn't really care where I was, as long as I was playing," Ellison said.
He started nine games and had 41 tackles, but recorded no sacks or tackles behind the line of scrimmage.
"Some guys make more plays than others," Missouri defensive line coach Craig Kuligowski explained. "He's more of a natural inside guy than a speed-rush guy."
In 2003, Ellison was moved inside. He had the size to be a successful tackle, plus surprisingly good speed for someone his size.
"He's got to be one of the fastest guys on the inside that I've ever seen," Kuligowski said of Ellison, who ran three 40s in under five seconds March 3 at Missouri's Pro Day. "On the field you can see it in his pursuit. I can think of three times in games where on a toss play or an outside run play where he actually chased and ran down the tailback. He does some stuff that you just say, 'Wow!' "
Kuligowski taught Ellison how to use his hands to fend off opposing linemen and maneuvers to get around them.
"I guess I was just beating people up and not using a lot of moves and things like that," he said. "But now everybody is just as big and strong, so you've got to use technique.
"Now you'll see me doing moves and stuff and using my hands -- all things I was never used to -- and playing smarter. Not just rushing in and standing up and trying to overpower people."
In 2003, Ellison was named to the All-Big 12 third team after making 72 tackles, including 14 for loss, four sacks and two forced fumbles. The Tigers finished 8-5 and went to a bowl game for the first time in five years.
In 2004, Ellison's numbers dipped to 60 tackles, 12½ tackles for loss and 2½ sacks. But that mostly can be explained by the overall improvement of Missouri's defense, which wound up ranked No. 1 in the Big 12. In 2003, opponents gained 5.0 yards per play and 75 snaps per game. In 2004, those numbers dropped to 4.7 and 64, respectively. That meant fewer chances to beef up his statistics.
"On third down and fourth down early in the year, people tried to run up the middle to try to get the first down and they didn't get it," Kuligowski explained. "So they tried to run the ball on the outside more, and (Ellison and fellow draft-eligible tackle C.J. Gibson ) get doubled on most pass protections."
Running backs had a tough time getting by Atiyyah Ellison in 2004. *
*
The media recognized this and named Ellison to the All-Big 12 first team, the only Tiger to achieve that distinction in Missouri's 5-6 season.
"I think he's a class kid," Kuligowski said. "He's going to be an excellent representative of the university in whatever he chooses to do. I think we're a better place for having him around."
Ellison earned an invitation to the Senior Bowl in late January in Mobile, Ala. Although Ellison was starting to make a name for himself, few people knew how to pronounce his first name (uh-TEE-uh), or spell it.
"Even at the Senior Bowl, they spelled it wrong. All my gear and stuff, even our little trading cards they gave us."
As part of the South squad, Ellison worked under Oakland Raiders coach Norv Turner's staff, especially defensive assistant Chris Griswold. Ellison got some pointers not only from Griswold, but practically every team who interviewed him.
"It was funny because everybody was coaching me up," Ellison said. "They were telling me stuff that I needed to work on and things like that. It meant a lot to me that those guys were watching me. Overall, everybody said I improved every day in practice."
He must have made an impression on Tampa Bay coach Jon Gruden and his staff, who were in charge of the North squad, by the time the game got under way.
"I got double-teamed a lot," Ellison said. "I didn't know why, but I guess it was kind of a compliment. I didn't have big numbers, but I had gap control."
Ellison realizes he probably won't make an immediate impact in the NFL, but is confident he can develop into a solid contributor.
"I think if I get the opportunity, I'm going to just learn as much as I can about everything and just watch the guys at my position," Ellison said. "If I can contribute, that's great, but I know that's probably not realistic to go in and think I'm going to start at some team or something like that. I'm going to just learn everything I can to improve."
