ORLANDO, Fla. - No player has had more fun during Pro Bowl practices than Ezekiel Elliott.

The rookie running back has pretended to jump-kick cornerback Richard Sherman while running with the ball. He's jokingly missed a goal-post dunk on purpose. He's spiked the ball and screamed after catching a pass in a drill with no defender. He's swapped jerseys with cornerback Xavier Rhodes and played defense on Dez Bryant. He's taken a rep at quarterback and another at offensive tackle.

Playing multiple positions is just Elliott having fun now, but his high school coach said he understood all of them at a young age.

"The greatest thing about Zeke in high school was his knowledge for the game," former John Burroughs School coach Gus Frerotte said after watching Saturday's practice. "I could tell him, 'Hey Zeke, go show that lineman what to do.' And he knew what to do because he played football for so long. He was so smart about the game."

Frerotte was an NFL quarterback for 15 seasons. While in Miami in 2005, Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett was his quarterbacks coach and Dallas offensive coordinator Scott Linehan was his OC. Frerotte believes the combination of those coaches and a standout offensive line have put Elliott in a perfect situation.

During Frerotte's final pro season with the Minnesota Vikings, second-year running back Adrian Peterson rushed for 1,760 yards. Frerotte now sees similarities between Elliott and the seven-time Pro Bowler.

"Zeke runs a lot like him," he said. "The muscle that he's put on and the strength, I compare those two pretty well. When they get out into the open field nobody is going to catch them."

The Zeke leap is a move Frerotte never saw from Elliott in high school. He smiles when talking about watching it now.

"He's going to get caught one of these times and that will end," he said. "But that's something he likes to do so if it works out it works out. Zeke's always had that flash and pizzazz to him, which keeps him young and fun and his teammates love it.

"Zeke is a big kid at heart, but when it comes time to perform he's serious about it and he goes and gets it done."

Twitter: @jonmachota