After setting the bar along the defensive line for three conference championship teams, Orange senior Ryan Sellers is now undaunted.
He will be an East Carolina Pirate.
On Thursday night, Sellers released a statement saying he will continue his career at East Carolina next fall. Sellers will start in Greenville as a preferred walk-on, not on scholarship.
Sellers was contacted by an East Carolina assistant coach after basketball season ended. He received offers from Division II Methodist University and Division III Randolph-Macon College, but felt playing under Scottie Montgomery at ECU offered him an opportunity to shine in the American Athletic Conference.
Listed at 6’0, 220 pounds, Sellers was the defensive end that recorded 32 sacks in three varsity seasons. During his junior season, Sellers was a star on possibly the greatest Orange defense in school history. Playing alongside current Vanderbilt defensive end Stone Edwards, Noah Rodgers and future N.C. State linebacker Payton Wilson, Sellers recorded 15 sacks and 27 tackles for loss. In 2016, Orange allowed only three offensive touchdowns during an 11-0 regular season, the first undefeated regular season at OHS since 1978.
In his senior season, Sellers led the team with eleven sacks and 24 tackles for loss. He also had the only interception of his career and recovered two fumbles.
Sellers has also been a varsity basketball player for three years, where he was a key reserve during Orange’s run to the 2016 Big 8 Tournament Championship and the 2017 regular season title. This winter, when Mitch Portman was in concussion protocol after suffering a knee to the head against Hillside and sophomore Mechai Holt broke his left foot, Sellers served as the team’s point guard for the duration of the season.