Personal
Ellison is part Māori. At eight, Ellison moved to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia with his father, Dan, who went on to become an economic advisor to the United Nations. Shortly thereafter, Riki's parents divorced and he relocated with his mother to Los Angeles, where she remarried Dennis Gray. Ellison went to high school in Tucson, AZ. The Ellison family comes from a strong sporting background, he is related to professional Rugby players Tamati Ellison and Jacob Ellison who both played in Super Rugby, Tamati now playing in Japan and Thomas Ellison who became one of the original All Blacks and the first Maori lawyer.
In 1992, Ellison relocated his family to New Zealand and attempted to bring a college bowl game called the Haka Bowl to New Zealand.
In 2001, while working for Lockheed Martin in Washington, DC, Riki was named the Head Coach of T.C. Williams High School in Alexandria, Virginia. This is the same high school that was portrayed in Remember The Titans. He did this without pay. As he said it was all about "helping kids".
Ellison's son, Rhett, was selected by the Minnesotta Vikings with their second fourth round pick of the 2012 NFL draft.
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