Mizzou legacy Braylon Ellison commits to Tigers: 'Dad was probably the happiest'

After mulling over his decision to visit other schools, Braylon Ellison considered “why?”

His hometown program of Missouri, the school his father and brother both played for, offered him during an official visit June 6-8. And by the end of the month, Ellison made up his mind and readied himself to announce his commitment to the Tigers.

“It was a close race for a little bit between them and Oregon State,” Ellison said. “I made a list of pros and cons, and I think that Mizzou just has better benefits and closer to the home. Obviously, that’s not the only like appeal, but that’s just an example.”

Ellison, a Class of 2026 interior offensive lineman, verbally pledged to Missouri on Tuesday, continuing a run on offensive players for the Tigers. The 6-foot-4, 285-pounder joined three-stars Khalief Canty Jr. and Brandon Anderson as interior line pieces to the 2026 class.

After making his decision, Ellison turned to the coaches and his father, Atiyyah Ellison, the Tigers’ director of player and alumni relation. The youngest Ellison never saw them more excited, including his father, who played for Missouri in the early 2000s before a six-year NFL career.

“My dad was probably the happiest I’ve ever seen him in a little while,” Ellison said. “My mom was happy, too. She’s excited for the whole journey. … My dad and my brother (Tyson Ellison) and their connections to the school provide huge opportunities for me, but not only that, I didn’t want that to be the reason I went somewhere. Obviously, Mizzou’s an SEC school, they provide great stuff to their players and have a great fan base that I’m excited to see.”

Ellison’s whirlwind month

Seeing his recruitment take off this offseason, more importantly this past month, Ellison navigated a booming period of his life with the help of former NFL fullback Justin Green, who played for the Baltimore Ravens with Ellison’s father.

“It felt like school ended two weeks ago, not going to lie,” Ellison laughed. “I haven’t had an open weekend since this weekend, actually.”

Serving as the running backs coach and recruiting coordinator at Montana, Green urged the young offensive lineman to break down the positives and negatives of both Missouri and Oregon State.

“He’s been a great partner with me, whenever we talked about college and whatnot,” Ellison said. “I had known who he was, but not until probably my sophomore year that I really talked to him, but he’s been a great friend when it came to talking about college. He not mentored, but just gave me a person to talk to about it, other than my family of course.”

Ellison became the Tigers’ ninth commit, joining Anderson, Canty, quarterback Gavin Sidwar, running back Maxwell Warner, wide receivers Devyon Hill-Lomax and Jabari Brady, tight end Isaac Jensen and linebacker Keenan Harris.

“I’m excited about being able to focus on my senior season,” Ellison said. “My weekends have been filled, but it’s not like I’ve been working out while I was there. I’m not saying I’m not going to celebrate it all, but it’s time to lock in.”