Aledo Star Colt Ellison Mature Beyond His Years
There are a few kids each recruiting cycle who stick out when it comes to maturity and how they conduct themselves on and off the field.
2019 Texas defensive end Colt Ellison is one of those kids as he made the tough decision to give up on baseball, a sport he had played since he was eight years old and was on a path to get drafted in, but the Aledo High School star told his parents he wanted to pursue football a year ago.
The Ellisons trusted their son as the four-star prospect has displayed a history of making mature decisions.
"We both told him he couldn't quit until we were sure where football would take him," his mother, Julie Ellison, recalled. "It broke our hearts when he didn't play this season, but we're pretty confident in his decision."
Ellison runs his own lawnmowing business while earning offers from programs like Notre Dame, Arkansas, Baylor, Minnesota, Northwestern, Oklahoma State, Penn State, TCU, Texas Tech and Utah.
“He hasn’t asked me for money in over a year,” said Ellison. "He’s an amazing kid.”
“He and a friend started mowing yards. My husband is a builder, so Colt can pretty much do anything. They’ll mow yards, haul off trees – it’s literally anything. He’s such a good kid that he works for people around town, and then they make him steak dinner at night. It’s pretty awesome.”
The relentless work ethic in everything he does is something Ellisons' parents have noticed in recent years.
“In the summer, he’ll go work out for a couple of hours and work all day till dark,” laughed Mrs. Ellison. “He’ll go to practice until 6:30 p.m. and then he’ll go mow a couple of yards. He’s crazy. I don’t know how he does it.”
The Texas native is also independent off the field. Ellison makes straight A’s in the classroom and has yet to ask his mother for help with his assignments heading into the final semester of his junior year.
“He’s the oldest of four, so he has three sisters,” stated Mrs. Ellison. “We’re pretty proud he turned out so good. I have never helped him with his homework. He’s never asked me to look at his folder or asked me to do anything for him.
“I don’t know where it comes from – he just has that quality where he’s independent. He doesn’t ask me for anything. It’s crazy.”
The Aledo star is anything but low-key on the football field. Ellison recorded 96 tackles, 13.5 sacks, 18 tackles for a loss, seven pass breakups and one pick-six in 2017.
“As a parent, I always knew he was good, but you think you’re just being a mom,” explained Ellison. “When he got to high school, I remember the first time he showed me his Hudl video, I was like ‘Oh my gosh.’ He was a beast.”
The ruthless style of play showed itself the last two seasons and has paid off with programs from across the country coming to Aledo to offer Ellison.
“He’s always been the most athletic and can do anything,” said Ellison. “The more I watched him his sophomore year and this year, it was like every play he was trying to get a scholarship. There wasn’t a play he took off.
“I feel like he stands out because of his effort. He has so much heart, and you can see it every play. It amazes me.”
Despite the success, Ellison hasn’t seen her son get caught up in the attention of being a national prospect. In fact, Ellison has pushed her son to enjoy the process and embrace the opportunities he’s earned.
“He’s humble,” Ellison stated. “He doesn’t like attention. He doesn’t like me talking about him. He doesn’t like doing those photo shoots and all that stuff. I’m trying to get him to enjoy and embrace it. This is only going to come around once in a lifetime.”
Ellison has listened to his mother’s advice as he won an award during the season and got out of his comfort zone to give back to those who made it all happen.
“We have one school in our town, and the entire town is focused on football,” Ellison explained. “He got nominated for Player of the Week and the whole elementary school took three days to have all the kids vote for him.
“He ended up having 80,000 votes. They had pictures of all the kids voting. I told him he had to go to the school to thank the kids. He went and had the best time. They were all asking for autographs. That’s been the hardest part for him, but he’s getting used to it.”
While the attention has been overwhelming at times, Ellison continues to embrace the recruiting process and knows he’s in a position not many get the chance to experience.
“His dad and I will text him, and he won’t answer,” said Ellison. “He’s getting so many texts, and everyone wants him to respond. He’s trying to do homework but what a blessing.
“I told him to enjoy it and to thank God every day for it. Every kid grows up wanting this opportunity.”
Baseball might have been a huge part of Ellison's life, but it seems he has made the right choice.