Ezekiel Elliott American American Football Player

Early life

Ezekiel Elliott was born on 22 July 1995 and is known by the nickname "Zeke". Both of his parents competed in college athletics. He attended John Burroughs School in Ladue, Missouri, where he played football, basketball and track and field, and also played baseball. As a junior in 2012 he rushed for 1,802 yards and 34 touchdowns, and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch named him its offensive player of the year. In his final season he gained 3,061 all-purpose yards and scored 50 touchdowns, though his team lost in the championship game in each of his last three years.

On the track he qualified for state meets in sprints and hurdles. At the 2013 Missouri Class 3 state championships he won the 100-metre dash, 200-metre dash, 110-metre hurdles and 300-metre hurdles within about two and a half hours, and he was named Missouri's Gatorade Track Athlete of the Year. Recruiting services ranked him among the leading running backs in the country. Although his parents had attended the University of Missouri, he chose to sign with Ohio State.

Career

At Ohio State, Elliott spent his first season as a backup to Carlos Hyde, then took over as the starting running back in 2014. In the Big Ten Championship Game that year he ran for 220 yards against Wisconsin, a result that sent the Buckeyes to the first College Football Playoff. He then gained 230 yards in the Sugar Bowl against Alabama and 246 yards with four touchdowns in the national championship game against Oregon, and he was named offensive most valuable player of both games.

His 2015 season began with ten consecutive games above 100 rushing yards. He finished eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting and declared for the NFL draft after the regular season. Over his college career he ran for 3,961 yards, second in Ohio State history behind Archie Griffin, and scored 43 rushing touchdowns.

The Dallas Cowboys selected him fourth overall in the 2016 draft, the first running back taken. As a rookie he led the league with 1,631 rushing yards, and he was named a first-team All-Pro, played in his first Pro Bowl, and was voted rookie of the year by the Pro Football Writers of America. He led the NFL in rushing a second time in 2018 with 1,434 yards. In September 2019 he signed a six-year contract extension with Dallas reported at 90 million dollars. Over his first seven seasons, all with the Cowboys, he was selected to three Pro Bowls and two All-Pro teams.

The Cowboys released him in March 2023. He signed a one-year contract with the New England Patriots in August of that year and played 17 games, five of them as a starter. In April 2024 he returned to Dallas on a one-year deal. At the end of December 2024 the team and Elliott agreed to part ways at his request, so that he could try to join a club that was still in the playoff race. He signed with the Los Angeles Chargers practice squad in January 2025, and the agreement expired later that month.

Recognition

Elliott received the Chicago Tribune Silver Football in 2015, the Big Ten's award for its most valuable player. That season he was also named second-team All-American and won the Graham-George Offensive Player of the Year award and the Ameche-Dayne Running Back of the Year award. In the NFL he was ranked seventh by fellow players on the NFL Top 100 list of 2017, the highest of any running back.

Personal life

Elliott studied marketing at Ohio State. He bought a house for his parents after signing his first professional contract. In August 2020 he became a shareholder in OnCore Golf Technology, a golf ball manufacturer based in Buffalo, New York.