Feb. 9, 2009

THIBODAUX, La. - After 10 years with Nicholls, starting as a player and making his way to defensive coordinator, Steve Ellis resigned from his post to take a job at Middle Tennessee State, announced the Athletics Department on Monday afternoon.

Ellis will be the Blue Raiders' secondary coach while also assisting with special teams. MTSU finished last season 5-7 overall and 3-4 in the Sun Belt, and closed out the season by winning three of the last four games.

"This is a great opportunity for Steve, and we wish him the best of luck. He has been like a son to me since he has been here. He did some great things here for us, and I know he will continue to go on to do great things at Middle Tennessee," said Head Coach Jay Thomas.

Ellis was a four-year letter winner (1999-2002) with the Colonels before suffering a career ending knee injury in his senior season against Southern. The Stringer, Miss. finished his career with 195 total tackles (126 solo), 4.5 tackles for a loss and five interceptions despite playing in only 32 games.

As a defensive coordinator for three seasons, his units led the Southland Conference in Total Defense in 2007, and were second in the league in the category in 2006. In 2007, Nicholls defense yielded 352.5 yards/game, while his 2006 squad only allowed 301.1 yards/game. He also served as the defensive backs coach in 2005 when Nicholls captured its first ever Southland Conference title.

Ellis also helped place two former Colonel defensive backs in professional football with Kareem Moore being drafted by the Washington Redskins in the 2008 NFL Draft, and Toney Edison who went on to play in the Canadian Football League. Ellis also served as the Nicholls pro liaison, and supervised student-athlete academic progress over the past four seasons.

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TRANSACTION - Ellis resigns.