 Bench pressing more than 500 pounds, he was the strongest player on the Trojans roster and was named one of the "Pac-10's Top 10 Players" by "Sports Illustrated" going into the 2007 season.At the end of the 2007 season, Ellis was voted the Pacific-10 Conference Defensive Player of the Year by league coaches, and was selected to the all-conference first team.Ellis was recognized as a unanimous first-team All-American, having received first-team honors from the Associated Press, American Football Coaches Association, Football Writers Association of America, Walter Camp Football Foundation and "The Sporting News", SI.com, Rivals.com.