Former Rice, Texans and Roughnecks linebacker Emmanuel Ellerbee shares message at annual youth football camp

HOME – Hustling from one drill to the next while delivering a message about the importance of education, former Rice University all-conference linebacker Emmanuel Ellerbe hosted his third annual football camp for youth Saturday on the Rice campus.

A graduate of Strake Jesuit and an All-Conference USA selection, Ellerbee, 27, played professionally for the Atlanta Falcons, Los Angeles Chargers, Seattle Seahawks, Texans and Houston Roughnecks.

“It’s great to be back at my alma mater, Rice University, being born and raised in Houston,” said Ellerbee, a former All-District and All-State honorable mention pick who chose the Owls over Princeton and Harvard and recorded 273 career tackles with 16 1/2 for a loss, five sacks and one interception. “It’s so great to see the kids get the school, the thrills and the drills and learn a lot of skills from the different coaches that we have. We have a lot of college coaches, some college players, some retired NFL players here too, to be able to teach the kids.”

Ellerbee supervised individual and seven-on-seven drills followed by yoga to close the camp.

“We teach them active recovery,” Ellerbee said. “They have to take care of their bodies so they can get to the next level.”

Ellerbee runs the camp through her nonprofit organization, Bees Believers, which stands for Be Exceptional N’ Everything.

“We care as much about students’ success in the field as we do about their academics, because we want the best of both worlds,” Ellerbee said. “When you finish your athletic career, use it as a means to get to your destination, not a final destination, because we are so much more than what we do on that field on Sunday. »

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com.