Exactly a year ago, Texas A&M extended a handful of offers. A select group of juniors, including four defensive linemen, received official scholarship offers to play football in College Station. Two eventual Aggie defensive

line signees – Sam Rayburn’s Brian Patrick and Cleveland’s Dennis Ellis – came from that particular group.

Ellis’ early offer came following a junior season when, as a defensive end, he registered 110 tackles and earned honorable mention Class 3A All-State honors.

At that time, Ellis was far from a finished product. He still is.

"Dennis Ellis is a young man whose best football is ahead of him," said Aggie defensive line coach Buddy Wyatt. "This season, we saw him make great strides as a football player and with his work habits. I’ve been very impressed with what I’ve seen."

Considering the fact that Ellis has racked up 210 tackles and 19 sacks over the past two seasons, the notion that Ellis has yet to scratch the surface on his potential makes him one of the most intriguing prospects in the Aggies’ Class of 2002.

In 2001, Ellis, a 6-foot-3, 250-pounder, was a first-team all-district selection at both fullback and linebacker. When he arrives at Texas A&M, Ellis will immediately put his hand on the ground and should become one of the Aggies’ most athletic defensive linemen.

How athletic is Ellis? Playing fullback in the Indians’ Wishbone offense, Ellis rushed for 750 yards and eight touchdowns. His long run of the season was an 81-yard jaunt– an obvious rare feat for a Division I defensive line prospect. Defensively, Ellis still had enough energy to star at linebacker. The big man racked up 100 tackles and seven sacks, with over 20 tackles for loss.

As it stands now, the only knock on Ellis is his lack of ideal size for a defensive end in a 3-4 scheme. Ellis’ weight should not be a problem for long. Knowing that he was going to be the Indians' starting fullback as a senior, Ellis got his weight all the way down from 270, which was his weight as a junior.

"He definitely has a lot of growth potential," says Wyatt. "In fact, on his official visit, Dennis already weighed 258 pounds. He’s already a pretty good-sized young man, a big, athletic kid who is going to bring a lot of athleticism to our line."

Given his frame, Ellis will probably grow into a 280-pounder with legitimate 4.8 speed and exceptional quickness.

Over the next four or five years, Ellis’ lethal combination of size and speed could make life miserable for Big 12 quarterbacks. Over a year ago, David Underwood – a current Michigan running back and a former district rival at Madisonville – said Dennis Ellis, then a sophomore, was the best high school opponent that he had ever faced. It was about that time that major programs from around the nation descended upon Cleveland, Texas, to scout the up-and-coming junior.

Ellis received early offers from the likes of A&M, LSU, UCLA and Iowa State. He chose the Aggies during the middle of the season. And despite recruiting attention from Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas, Ellis never wavered from his A&M commitment.

Ellis is a likely redshirt candidate, but should see the field very early in his career.

According to Wyatt, "Dennis has all the talent in the world, but he has no idea how good he can be."

Given the Aggies’ early offer and excitement about his signature rolling across the fax machine, it’s safe to assume that the A&M staff already knows exactly how good Ellis can be and how far he can go.

– Billy Liucci