Watch all UNK home football games live on News Channel Nebraska TV.

KEARNEY, Neb. — It’s a new season, in a new place, in a new role for Colby Ellis.

But it’s anything but new to see an Ellis on a football field with a whistle in his mouth.

“Going into coaching kind of all started with my family. My great-grandparents were coaches in the state of Oklahoma, whether it be basketball, football. And then, of course, my dad. My dad is a longtime high school coach in Oklahoma for 30+ years.”

The Ellis family made stops across Oklahoma in towns like Weatherford, Elk City, Pawnee and Tonkawa as David Ellis ascended the high school coaching ladder. Along the way, Colby fell in love with the game.

With three brothers in other careers, he’s keeping the line of Ellis coaches alive.

“That’s just something I’ve always to do. That was my passion all the way from playing, and being around the game, and being in the locker room and the coaches offices, that’s just always been my passion.”

The first person to give him an assistant coaching job was Ryan Held in 2014, then the head coach at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M. The pair intersected again at Nebraska in 2018 and ’19 and again at North Alabama last year.

“We’ve had a great relationship. Obviously, we’re going on knowing each other for… 10 years coming up here. It’s been really good. We work well together.”

It’s Ellis’s first time as a permanent offensive coordinator and first time as quarterbacks coach. He’s made a positive impact on senior All-American quarterback TJ Davis.

“He’s never going to lie to you, he’s going to tell you exactly what it is. That’s what I love about him. He keeps me honest, he keeps all of us on our toes. He likes to say, ‘sometimes you might not like me but that’s ok.’ I definitely think that all of us have had our fair share of him getting on us, but at the end of the day, it’s going to make us better and we understand that.”

Through two games, the Ellis-led offense has averaged 330 yards per game in put Davis in place to score six touchdowns.

“This is one of the best offenses I’ve probably played in. It allows me to throw the ball, show my arm off a little bit and also get back in the run game and show how explosive we are as an offense.”

Whatever the stats end up being this season, Ellis knows from decades of family wisdom, that the sport’s about more than the results.

“That’s something my dad taught me at a very, very young age. Pushing these guys to be better off the field, get their degree and just to be good husbands and fathers as well.”