Henry Ellard

Henry Ellard
No. 80, 85, 17
Position: Wide receiver
Personal information
Date of birth: (1961-07-21) July 21, 1961
Place of birth: Fresno, California
Career information
High school: Herbert Hoover (Fresno, California)
College: Fresno State
NFL Draft: 1983 / Round: 2 / Pick: 32
Career history
As player:
As coach:
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Receptions: 814
Receiving yards: 13,777
Touchdowns: 65
Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR

Henry Austin Ellard (born July 21, 1961) is a former American football wide receiver who played for the Los Angeles Rams (1983–1993), Washington Redskins (1994–1998), and the New England Patriots (1998) of the National Football League (NFL). Ellard also qualified for the Olympic trials in 1992 with in the triple jump, although he injured his hamstring during the Trials and did not make the team.[1]

High school and college

Ellard attended Hoover High School in Fresno, California. He won the CIF California State Championships in the triple jump in 1979[2] For college, Ellard stayed in town and attended Fresno State University from 1979 to 1982 where he set an NCAA record with 1,510 receiving yards in his final season. Ellard still holds the Fresno State record for touchdown catches, (25), and is third in receiving yards (2,947) and fourth in receptions (138).[3]

Professional career

Ellard was drafted in the second round (32nd overall) of the 1983 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams. In the NFL, Ellard was known for using his height and jumping ability to get to high passes, his leadership, and his superior skills as a route runner. Respected commentators like Deion Sanders and John Madden have stated he is one of the best ever. In his eleven seasons with Los Angeles he went to three Pro Bowls, first selected as a punt returner in 1984, then as a wide receiver in 1988 and 1989. At the time of his retirement, Ellard held Rams' team records for career receptions (593), receiving yards (9,761), 100-yard games (26), punt return average (11.3), and total offense (11,663).[7]

Upon joining the Redskins, Ellard set off on a blistering pace for the 1994 season, ending it with 1,397 yards, 102 behind league-leader Jerry Rice. He had three consecutive 1,000 yard seasons, giving him seven for his career (his 799 yards in the strike-shortened 1987 season was on pace for an eighth). His final 1,000 yard season came in 1996 and required a 155-yard performance against the Dallas Cowboys second-ranked defense to push him to 1,014 yards for the season.

As his production declined, Ellard became expendable, and found himself as a member of the Patriots in 1998. He retired after the 1998 season with 814 receptions for 13,777 yards, which placed him third on the all-time list, and 65 touchdowns. He also gained 1,527 yards returning punts, 364 yard returning kickoffs, 50 rushing yards, and 4 punts returned for a touchdown. Overall, he gained 15,718 total yards.[8]

NFL statistics

Receiving Stats
Year
Team
Rec
Yards
AVG
LG
TD
1983 Los Angeles Rams 16 268 16.8 44 0
1984 Los Angeles Rams 34 622 18.3 63t 6
1985 Los Angeles Rams 54 811 15.0 64t 5
1986 Los Angeles Rams 34 447 13.1 34t 4
1987 Los Angeles Rams 51 799 15.7 81t 3
1988 Los Angeles Rams 86 1,414 16.4 68 10
1989 Los Angeles Rams 70 1,382 19.7 53 8
1990 Los Angeles Rams 76 1,294 17.0 50t 4
1991 Los Angeles Rams 64 1,052 16.4 38 3
1992 Los Angeles Rams 47 727 15.5 33t 3
1993 Los Angeles Rams 61 945 15.5 54 2
1994 Washington Redskins 74 1,397 18.9 73t 6
1995 Washington Redskins 56 1,005 17.9 59 5
1996 Washington Redskins 52 1,014 19.4 51 2
1997 Washington Redskins 32 485 15.2 27 4
1998 Washington Redskins 2 29 14.5 19 0
1998 New England Patriots 5 86 17.2 19 0
TOTAL 814 13,777 16.9 81t 65

Coaching career

After his retirement, Ellard became an assistant coach at Southern California Christian High School, then became an assistant track-and-field coach at Villa Park High School. In 2000, he was a coach at Fresno State before taking the receivers coaching job for the St. Louis Rams in 2001. On January 25, 2009 Ellard came to the New York Jets as the wide receivers coach.[9][10] He was named the wide receivers coach for the New Orleans Saints on March 14, 2012,[11] and spent three seasons with the club before leaving after the 2014 season.[12]He now is the WR coach at SA Christian High School.

References

  1. ↑ Weyler, John (September 13, 1993). "The Ellard of Old Shows Up for This One". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-04-12.
  2. ↑ "California State Meet Results - 1915 to present". Hank Lawson. Retrieved 2012-12-25.
  3. ↑ http://www.gobulldogs.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/ellard_henry00.html Fresno State Bio
  4. ↑ http://www.totalfootballstats.com/Team_College.asp?id=80&Season=1980
  5. ↑ http://www.totalfootballstats.com/Team_College.asp?id=80&Season=1981
  6. ↑ http://www.totalfootballstats.com/Team_College.asp?id=80&Season=1982
  7. ↑ http://planetrams.5u.com/hall19.html Planet Rams
  8. ↑ http://www.sports-focus.net/2009/08/history-of-hall-of-fame-wide-receivers.html Sports Focus
  9. ↑ Thomas, Jim (January 24, 2009). "Ellard to Jets, Baggett in as WRs coach with St. Louis Rams". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved 2009-10-03.
  10. ↑ http://www.newyorkjets.com/team/coach/1418-henry-ellard NY Jets
  11. ↑ http://www.neworleanssaints.com/news-and-events/article-1/Saints-Name-Henry-Ellard-as-Wide-Receivers-Coach/3554d4ee-4016-4cd5-b682-a3d2e1054160
  12. ↑ http://www.si.com/nfl/2015/01/02/new-orleans-saints-coaches-henry-ellard-terry-malone
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