High school football: While Elyria Catholic's Levi Ellis does it all and then some, what he seems to do best is find the end zone

Levi Ellis is liable to be almost anywhere on the football field on Friday nights. But his favorite spot to hang out this season has been the end zone.The 5-foot-10, 195-pound Elyria Catholic junior has 13 touchdowns in five games this season and has scored three touchdowns in three of his last four games. "Our offensive line does a good job of making big holes so it's easy for me to find places to run," Ellis said. "Last year we had more of a passing offense so I didn't get as many carries. This year the offense has changed and I've had an increased role. It's a honor to know the coaches trust me with the ball."Elyria Catholic coach Brian Fox and his staff trust Ellis to do just about anything and Ellis has responded by rushing for 667 yards and 12 touchdowns over the first half of the season while also catching 12 passes out of the backfield for 123 yards and another touchdown. That alone would put Ellis in the discussion of the best players in the Great Lakes Conference, but that's not the whole story. Ellis has also thrown three passes this season, completing them all, including an 81-yard touchdown to Jack Kenneally in a Week 3 win over Midview. Being a part of scoring plays is nothing new for Ellis, but being on the throwing end of one was one of the highlights of his season so far. "I've scored many touchdowns before but it's a different kind of excitement when you get to throw one," Ellis said. Ellis also excels on defense, where he plays strong safety and leads the team with 49 tackles and three interceptions. "It's extremely rare to find a player who can do all of the things Levi can do," Fox said. "He's extremely versatile. Obviously he can run the ball extremely well, but if threw him out there at receiver he'd be starting out there, too. He makes preparing for us extremely difficult."Ellis, a three-sport athlete who was also a standout on Elyria Catholic's GLC winning baseball team in the spring, is quick to share the credit for his success. "I just do my best to contribute on both sides of the ball," he said. "The coaching staff and my teammates but me in a position to make a lot of tackles. I would say my role is just to make plays."Even though Ellis didn't have the impressive physical stature he has today, Fox knew there was something special about him the first time he stepped foot on the field as a freshman. "There are the small things you find in a kid, the ability to break tackles, vision, quick reflexes, a lot of the things that metrics can't quantify," Fox said. "Levi had them coming in as a freshman. He wasn't huge, he was 150 pounds. But he's out there running like he's covered in motor oil. He can't be brought down. He's always moving forward." Ellis has played varsity since his freshman year but his talents and leadership skills were really forged in the Panthers' COVID-riddled 2020 season. "Right after the playoff game got canceled (last year), we knew we didn't want this to ever happen again," Ellis said. "We still had so much to prove. This year we've taken it to a different level. We know next week isn't guaranteed, so we have to go out every Friday and leave it all on the field."The Panthers are 3-2 but had fourth-quarter leads in their two losses to Elyria and Rocky River. "A minor setback for a major comeback, we're ready to get back out there and show what we can do," Ellis said of last week's last-second loss to the Pirates. Fox is expecting Ellis to continue to do big things — on and off the field — over the second half of the season. "He's not breaking down, I feel like he's getting in better and better shape. I feel like it's one of those things where I expect him to continue to grow," Fox said. "He's a very selfless kid, he encourages others to grow, he's very supportive of his teammates. I'm really excited to see what his continued leadership will bring to this team."If the season ended today, the Panthers, who are sixth in the Division V, Region 18 computer ratings, would host a playoff game on the new artificial turf at Dan Reaser Stadium. "To wear the No. 44 for this school and this community means a lot to me," Ellis said. "I know I have the entire Elyria Catholic community supporting me. It's an honor to play for a school that has such a great football tradition."Contact Todd Shapiro at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com