Overcoming adversity is a theme in Porter Ellett’s life.
The two-time Super Bowl winning offensive quality control coach for the Kansas City Chiefs had an unlikely journey to where he is now, starting at just 4 years old when he lost the use of his right arm. He shared with students the story of how his faith, fluency in Spanish, and love of sports led him to his NFL job.
Ellett was invited to campus by the world languages and cultures department. Dr. Alexander Aldrich, assistant professor of Spanish, went to college with Ellett at Brigham Young University (BYU), and the two spent time together as missionaries teaching Spanish to other missionaries.
As a young child, Ellett survived a farm accident that detached nerves in his spine. His arm lost function and was later amputated.
“Early on, I went into a shell,” he told the audience.
Ellett relied on his faith to give him the strength to overcome challenges.
“Every day you have to get up and do what you need to do,” he said.
His love of sports also became an essential emotional outlet.
“That was how I could get all the stress out and just go out and play ball. It was always refreshing to me,” Ellett recalled.
Part of Ellett's campus visit included connecting with football players, as well as students in a Spanish class.
Throughout high school, he ran track and field and played baseball and basketball. Even one-handed, he was a star athlete. He knew he wanted to eventually coach baseball or basketball. His town was too small for football. His first real exposure to that sport came at BYU a semester after he was scheduled to graduate. After failing a course, he spent an additional semester there and worked as an equipment manager for football. That’s when his dreams changed.
“I just fell in love with football and the mentality of the team sport. I thought, ‘I want to work in football,’” he said.
But that dream took some years before coming true. Ellett worked at Goldman Sachs in taxes but eventually went back to school to try to become a graduate assistant for the football team, a common first step in a coaching career.
He didn’t get the job. He stayed close to the sport, though, as the facilities assistant for the football stadium. Later, when visiting a friend who also taught Spanish to missionaries and was then a strength coach with the Chiefs, he got the opportunity to meet personally with head coach Andy Reid.
Reid was moved by Ellett’s tenacity and resilience and, when an assistant position opened up, he suggested Ellett apply. He got that job.
“He said, you’ll be my right-hand man and I said, sounds great, as long as you don’t mind that your right-hand man doesn’t have a right hand,” Ellett said. “He laughed and said I guess you’ll be my left-hand man.”
Along with recounting his life story, Ellett recommended learning a second language.
“Clearly, it opened doors for me,” he said. “Not only that, it changes the way you think and is such a great way to really connect with people in another culture.”
Aldrich told students that it’s never too late to start learning another language and reminded them that one of the Spanish courses offered is a 10-day immersive trip to Cuba.
Reflecting on his life, Ellett also told the audience that he’s thankful for the challenges he faced.
“It’s not fun, but I see the gift that it is. Literally, coaching the best players in the world is a miracle,” he said. “At the end of the day, I’m grateful for the opportunity that I bared a bit of a burden to be able to be an example for other people and to be able to help others around me.”
Here’s a link to Porter’s NFL Films special.
Read more: Chiefs' 'left-hand man' shares his story at Concordia