It seems like just yesterday Kevin Ellison was tearing it up for the Habersham Central Raiders, and yet here we are, five years later watching Ellison close his collegiate career with a four-TD performance in a Georgia Southern win over Troy.
It has to be emotional for Ellison as December 3 marks the end of his college career. The QB ended on a high note, leading the Eagles to a 28-24 win in front of the home crowd to close the season with five wins.
Ellison was his usual self, having an almost flawless afternoon. The redshirt-senior completed 10-of-14 passes for 127 yards and two touchdowns, adding 115 rushing yards on ten carries, scoring two others. He ripped off a 54-yard touchdown run and struck a Heisman pose in the end zone in the second quarter, marking the final rushing score of his career. Just moments earlier in the quarter, he ran one in from 24 yards out.
With 9:46 to go in the game and down by three, Ellison connected with BJ Johnson III for a 64-yard go-ahead touchdown that proved to be the game-winner.
For Ellison, he finishes his senior year with 871 yards passing and 8 TDs to just three interceptions, while rushing for 678 yards and 7 TD. In the win over Troy, he also collected his first collegiate reception, a nine-yard pickup.
Ellison’s career at Georgia Southern includes an incredible sophomore campaign in which he passed for 1,001 yards and 5 TD while rushing for 1,096 yards and 12 scores. He was one of only four players in the nation in that 2014 season to throw and run for over 1,000 yards. In his four-year career at GSU, Ellison collected 3,368 rushing yards and 35 TD, averaging over six yards per carry. He also passed for 3,225 yards and 19 TD to 14 interceptions, completing 218 of 402 passes (54%).
“It’s been the best experience of my life – the atmosphere, the fans and all the support we get,” exclaims Ellison. “It’s been a great journey, and I’m blessed to be able to play for Georgia Southern. It’s a very special place.”
The General Studies major has numerous big moments to look back and reflect on during his time at GSU. One of his most notable performances includes a monumental win at Florida as a freshman. He ran for 118 yards and two scores at “The Swamp” earning much praise nationally for his performance in the upset win.
Other top moments for Ellison include a pair of sophomore performances that earned him Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week (at Georgia Tech & at South Alabama). In his junior season, he led the Eagles past Bowling Green in the GoDaddy Bowl, rushing for 70 yards.
Ellison’s honors include All-SoCon Freshman Team in 2013 and All-Sun Belt Conference Second Team in 2014.
As a Habersham Central Raider (2008-11), Ellison tallied 4,372 yards rushing and 63 TD, both school records, while throwing for 1,412 yards and 15 TD. He left high school ranked 10th behind Herschel Walker on the all-time Georgia touchdown list, and was named the 190th-best player in Georgia and ranked as a one-star recruit by ESPN. In 2011, Ellison was named the AJC Class 4A Offensive Player of the Year after rushing for 2,138 yards and 32 touchdowns, good for sixth in the nation for rushing yards his senior season.
Ellison averaged over 200 yards rushing per game that year, leading the Raiders to a 4A State Playoff appearance against Chattahoochee, where he rushed for 214 yards and four TD in the loss.
