When Luther Elliss was growing up in Mancos, there was a lot of orange in the house.

Elliss’ family members were huge fans of the Broncos. Both his father, Jack, and mother Segaula passed down their love for the team, leading Luther to say he was a “Broncos fan by birthright.”

“Our household was all out Broncos,’’ said Elliss, 54, born in 1973 in the southwest Colorado town of barely 1,000 residents. “John Elway was our guy, and I was so excited about The Three Amigos (receiving stars). The Orange Crush (Super Bowl team of 1977) was a little before my time, but I did know about them because we had memorabilia all around the house with them.”

The defensive tackle ended up being a first-round pick by Detroit and made two Pro Bowls while playing for the Lions 1995-2003. He then finished his career with the Broncos in 2004 and later was the team chaplain 2015-16.

Now, Elliss, the defensive tackles coach at the University of Utah, has a renewed interest in the Broncos. His son, outside linebacker Jonah Ellis, was selected by Denver out of Utah in the third round of last week’s draft.

“It’s exciting,’’ said Luther, who watched the draft in Salt Lake City along with Jonah and about a dozen family members when the selection was made April 26. “It’s a perfect spot for him. … We’re just grateful it’s the Broncos. It’s like a homecoming for us. When he got that call, it was just pandemonium because everybody in the family already were Broncos fans.”

When Jonah first takes the field, it will mark a second combination in which both a father and son played for the Broncos. Linebacker Tom Graham, who died in 2017, was with them 1972-74 and son Daniel Graham played tight end for Denver 2007-10.

“That’s history,’’ Luther said. “That’s something you can’t take away and is very unique. It’s a good trivia question.”

Jonah, 23, was born in 2003, so he has no memories of his father’s NFL career. But he did live in the Denver area for a year when Luther was the team chaplain, the first job he had in football after having retired as a player a decade earlier.

“It was really awesome just to see my dad start to get back into football,’’ Jonah said. “Even though he was just the chaplain at the time, you could see that his love for the sport really just lights him up and gets him up and gets him excited to go to work and stuff.”

Jonah said he’s “really excited to come down” to where his father both played and served as team chaplain. After all, he has regularly been briefed by his dad on what it’s like to be with the Broncos.

“He just told me how great of a culture, how great of a fanbase and how it was really a family vibe out there,’’ Jonah said.

Speaking of family, the NFL now will have another player wear “Elliss” on the back of a jersey. Luther and his wife, Rebecca, have 12 children, seven of whom are adopted. Four are now on NFL rosters, with Kaden, 28, being an Atlanta Falcons linebacker, Christian, 25, a New England Patriots linebacker and Noah, 25, a Philadelphia Eagles linebacker.

Speaking of trivia questions, Luther figures his family has got to be part of another.

“I’ve been asked that a lot, but I don’t know the answer,’’ Luther said of whether another father who played in the NFL has had four sons who also did. “I’ve got a few people who were going to see if they could find it out. … But we are extremely grateful.”

Luther insists it’s not difficult when a team with one of his sons plays a team with another on it because he cheers for them individually. So he’s looking forward to when the Falcons, with Kaden, play at Denver in 2024.

“One of the reasons why Jonah came out early is he wanted to be able to play against his brothers,’’ Luther said of Jonah departing after three Utah seasons. “He wanted to get to the NFL and get going and compete against his brothers.”

Luther coached all four of his football-playing sons, including having Kaden, Christian and Noah when they played at Idaho, and he was the Vandals’ defensive line coach from 2017-21.

Luther moved on to Utah in 2022, and had the 6-foot-2, 246-pound Jonah for two seasons. He didn’t work regularly with Jonah since he played defensive end, and his position coach was Lewis Powell. But he sure knows all about him as a player.

“I’m a little biased but I do think he’s a great athlete with a great motor,’’ Luther said. “He’s always constantly running. He is really strong for his size, and he shocks a lot of offensive tackles and tight ends just because he is so strong. … I think he’s a good pass rusher. I think he could become great. He’s still developing.”

Jonah had 12 sacks in 10 games last season before missing the final three due to shoulder surgery, but he said he is now fully healed. The Broncos have solid young holdovers at outside linebacker in Jonathon Cooper, Baron Browning and Nik Bonitto, but they considered Jonah too good to pass up in the third round.

“I’m obviously familiar with his dad when his dad was here,’’ said Broncos assistant general manager Darren Mougey. “But (Johan is) a young guy with pass-rush talent, plays hard, has the makeup we look for here.”

Johan is a much different player than his father, who was the No. 20 pick of the 1995 NFL draft out of Utah and was listed by Detroit at 6-5, 318 pounds. He was adept at stopping the run but also could get to the quarterback, having a career-high 8½ sacks in 1997. He made Pro Bowls in 1999 and 2000.

“He was a solid player with the Lions,’’ said former running back Reuben Droughns, who was with Luther in Detroit  2000-01 and was his Denver teammate in 2004. “He was hard to block. I remember he always had a smile on his face except when I was running the ball in practice. It was serious business then.”

The Lions released Elliss after the 2003 season, when he had played in just five games due to a torn pectoral muscle. When Elliss was a free agent, Droughns said Broncos officials asked about him and he told them they would be getting a leader and hard-working player.

“I chose to play in Denver toward the end of my career because I wanted an opportunity just because we grew up Broncos fans,’’ Luther said. “I wanted my dad and my mom to have a chance to see me in a Broncos uniform. It was pretty awesome the day I called my dad to tell him I was signing with the Broncos. He was blown away. He said, ‘You’re kidding. You’re pulling my leg.’ And I was like, ‘No, Dad. I’m going to be a Bronco.’’’

Luther’s mother now lives in Oregon. His father died of lung cancer in 2007 at age 69, three years after seeing his son play for the Broncos.

Luther said it was a frustrating season because he only got into eight games, being hampered by a back injury and another torn pectoral muscle.

“I was grateful the Broncos came knocking, and I really was excited about it, and I thought I could have a few more years left,’’ Luther said. “But basically, I had one year and that was pretty much it. The body was beaten up.”

One highlight of the season came when Elway, the legendary Broncos quarterback who retired after the 1998 season, visited a practice and Luther met him for the first time.

“He was the man,’’ Luther said. “When I had the chance to meet him, it was just awesome. I remember thinking, ‘This was John Elway. I got to shake his hand.’’’

Little did Luther know he would be working for Elway a decade later.

Luther Ellis went into a manufacturing business after he retired, and there were difficulties. In 2009, due to some bad investments, he lost a home he had owned in the Detroit area and had to file for bankruptcy.

By 2015, Luther Elliss was living in Salt Lake City and was heavily involved with a Christian church. While playing for the Lions, he had earned a Bible studies degree at Stand Ministries.

“When I played in Denver, (Gary) Kubiak and I got to know each other well,’’ Luther said of Kubiak, who was then offensive coordinator and in 2015 had been named head coach. “We enjoyed each other’s conversations, and he knew I was a man of God.

“So, one day, I get a call from Colorado, and I answered. Somebody says, ‘This is Koob.’ I’m like, ‘Koob?’ He said, this is Coach Kubiak. I’m calling because I want you to be my team chaplain.”

So, Luther headed to Denver, where Elway was then the general manager. He said it “awesome” working for him and he “enjoyed the conversations” the two hand.

During his two seasons as Denver’s chaplain, Luther Elliss was well-regarded by Broncos players.

“He was a good dude, a guy the guys respected because he had played in the league,’’ said Chris Harris Jr., then a Broncos cornerback. “If guys had something going on, they were comfortable talking to Luther. And he had a lot of kids, so guys knew that Luther was a solid father figure.”

Luther enjoyed his two seasons back in Denver. In the first one, the Broncos won Super Bowl 50.

“When I came back into football, I was just grateful,’’ he said. “That Super Bowl season, everything just came together. I just prayed for them a lot.”

After that season, Luther had a chance to get into coaching at Idaho, where Kaden was playing and where Christian and Noah would enroll. Then it was on to Utah, where Jonah had one season under his belt.

In 2024, for the first time in his coaching career, Elliss won’t have one of his sons on the team. But he will bring plenty of attention to the Falcons, the Patriots, the Eagles and, of course, the Broncos.

And some potential Utah recruits will get to know about the Broncos. When Luther goes to meet recruits, he makes it a point to bring along one particular item.

“The only time I wear my Super Bowl ring is usually in recruiting,’’ he said. “It’s a cool talking piece.”

So is the fact his son was just drafted by the Broncos.