Owls football

FAU defensive tackle Ray Ellis is attempting to come back from a pair of major knee injuries.

BOCA RATON — Florida Atlantic defensive tackle Ray Ellis was more jovial than usual.

Not that Ellis isn’t always in a good mood, but there was something extra when he met the media last week. When he walked in, he greeted the room with a wide smile and said, “Nice to see you guys. It’s been a while.”

That’s what happens when a pair of major knee injuries have kept you sidelined for most of the past two seasons. After the surgeries, Ellis is slowly working his way back to possibly contributing for the Owls this year.

“In my mind, the only thing I know how to do is work,” Ellis said. “I don’t know any other way. I don’t ask for anything to be handed to me. I don’t doubt why this happened to me.”

A redshirt senior, Ellis is only participating in individual noncontact drills. That is progress, considering what he has endured the past three years. He tore the same ACL twice in a span of 13 months.

Ellis has played just one game since 2015.

“It was definitely different, definitely a humbling experience of not being on the field,” he said. “Honestly, I think it helped me grow up mentally. I mean, if I can go through that, I can deal with anything.”

What hurt Ellis the most is he missed the most successful season in school history. Last year the Owls finished 11-3, won the Conference USA championship and defeated Akron in the Boca Raton Bowl. It was especially stinging because he endured two of the three consecutive 3-9 seasons before being injured.

“It’s definitely motivating because I’ve been a winner my whole entire life, especially in high school,” said Ellis, who played at Holy Spirit in New Jersey. “I was a part of two state championship teams. That was like the norm. It was either state championship or bust.”

Ellis said he understands dealing with adversity is part of football. Since the second injury, his motto has been, “push through it everyday.” His roommate, defensive tackle Hunter Snyder, felt Ellis remained positive throughout.

“I’ve been with him through the ups and downs,” Snyder said. “I feel like he’s going to get back. He’s a competitor, he wants to get back on the field and he will. He’s going to have a good season.”

The Owls plan to bring Ellis along slowly, although they could use him to add depth on the defensive line.

“Kind of taking it slow,” FAU coach Lane Kiffin said. “We had high hopes for him and he was doing some good things prior to the injury. We hope he can continue to add to this depth.”

Even after the injuries, Ellis said he will continue the same approach. This is his last opportunity to have an impact at the collegiate level.

“It’s the way I have to be,” Ellis said. “I can’t be someone else. I just have this demeanor in my head that I just have to be the best I can possibly be. I won’t let anything get me down, sidetrack me or change me. It’s one mentality, and that’s just to get it done.”

“In my mind, the only thing I know how to do is work. I don’t know any other way. I don’t ask for anything to be handed to me.” Ray Ellis