Bryson Ellis doesn’t think he can dance.
“Not at all,” the New Hope High School senior said when asked about his ability to move to the music.
When it comes to the football field, though, Ellis can juke, jitter, and glide with the best of them.
But don’t expect Ellis do get too hyped about his proclivity to leave defenders in his wake — at least not until the Trojans play for a state championship. Until then, Ellis will continue to snap off moves as a wide receiver that are as crisp and clean as a Michael Jackson moonwalk.
Ellis displayed his knack for making defender grasping at air Friday night in a three-touchdown performance that helped the New Hope High football team beat Lewisburg 47-14 in a Mississippi High School Activities Association Class 5A, Region 1 game at Trojan Field.
“We just make them miss and score,” Ellis said. “Everybody thinks I can juke, but you just make them miss and score.”
The victory helped New Hope (8-1, 4-1 region) bounce back from a loss to region leader Oxford last week and set the stage for a game against West Point (7-3, 4-1) that likely will determine which team finishes second in the region and earns the chance to play host to a first-round playoff game.
Ellis did his part in an effort that showcased the Trojans’ ability to break big plays by someone other than junior running back Brenton Spann. Ellis caught touchdown passes from Stone Sisson that went for 42, 46, and 19 yards. Spann, who didn’t play in the second half after the Trojans built a 27-7 halftime lead, started the scoring with a 60-yard run. Sisson added a 4-yard touchdown run and Oscar Lewis (6-yard run) and C.J. Clay (58-yard run) completed New Hope’s scoring.
But the one people will be talking about was Ellis’ second score. On the first, all Ellis had to do was walk into the end zone behind a convoy of blocks after Sisson delivered a pump fake to shake off the defense.
The “dance” moves came out on Ellis’ second score. Leading 20-7 and with a first down at the Lewisburg 46-yard line, Sisson found Ellis open around the 20. Ellis had time to turn and shoulder up to the defender. He stepped to his left like he was going to move inside, but the step actually was a juke designed to get the defender to commit. The move worked, as the defender reacted, which created an opening to the right for Ellis to step through and mosey into the end zone.
“It is a rhythm in dancing, but when you juke you try not to do too much — just score,” said Ellis, who had three touchdowns in a game for the first time in his career.
At the start of the season, New Hope coach Kris Pickle counted on having Ellis and Lee Brandon as his two playmakers at wide receiver. When Brandon went down with an injury, the Trojans were forced to rely more on Spann while other receivers settled into bigger roles. Players like Andre Erby, Jeremy Newton, and Asher Bateman have worked hard to replace Brandon, who is expected to return in a couple of weeks, but on Friday New Hope looked like a team confident it could score running the ball or throwing it.
“The game dictates all of that stuff,” Pickle said. “Hashes and the way they play coverage and stuff has a lot to do with who gets the ball. We don’t go into a game where we say, ‘We’re going to try to get Bryson the ball so many times, or we’re going to get Erby the ball so many times. There have been games Jeremy has led the team in receiving, or Erby has had more receptions than anybody.
“A lot of that goes back to being able to take what they give you and the situational stuff.”
Ellis said he had to step up after Brandon went down. He believes he is a playmaker who can make “big plays in big games.” While the latest victory helped New Hope clinch a playoff berth for the first time since 2010, Ellis believes bigger plays will be made in bigger games. It sounds simple, but he said his focus is to make plays when his number is called. If he continues to do that, Ellis feels there is no reason New Hope can’t keep its season going into December and play for a state title in Starkville.
“There is more after this,” Ellis said. “This wasn’t the state championship game. You have bigger things.”
The way Ellis sees it, there is plenty of time left this season to make “a lot” of big plays. In the meantime, Ellis will continue to sharpen his moves so maybe his opinion of his dancing ability will change.
Spann, who has some smooth moves of his own, feels Ellis will play a key role in helping New Hope realize its ultimate goal.
“Tonight, everybody had to play,” Spann said. “We had to put last week behind us. They made a few more plays than we did. We know what we can do. We have weapons. It just so happens that we have run the ball more, but tonight we really opened up and were a complete team.”
And when it comes to dancing, Spann believes Ellis has “moves.” Does that mean he can dance? Spann isn’t sure, but he knows his style, which isn’t averse from taking contact and bouncing off it, is different than Ellis’ . He said he will look forward to watching Ellis’ move on tape and trying to incorporate into his arsenal.
“I think that is one of his favorite moves he puts on defenders, the stop and go,” Spann said. “Bryson is a really great athlete. He is a senior. He really didn’t get a chance to show what he can do this year, but he has it in him. He can do it.”
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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