Support System Spurs Success For Holloman - Irish Sports Daily
After a couple visits to Ann Arbor, J.J. felt he was ready to commit to Michigan. His mother cautioned him against making a decision too soon, but in December of last year, he went with his gut.
“Once he got back home, he started thinking maybe he should have held on for a minute,” she says.
J.J. eventually decommitted, but not before being up front with the Wolverine staff.
“Michigan was great,” his mother says. “They love him. Great coaches up there, great people.”
The next time he makes a commitment it will be the end of his recruiting process.
“This time around, he wants to know he’s definitely 100 percent sure,” Mrs. Holloman says. “He wants to make sure he visits all of his top schools and gives everybody a fair opportunity to present themselves and for him to present himself.
“I said, ‘Of all the offers you have, you can only select one school, so make sure it’s the best one for you, not for anybody else, but for you. I won’t be there. You will be. I’m going to be at home, so just make sure you’re OK with whatever choice you make because I’m going to support whatever it is.’”
Distance will not play a role in that decision,
which is why he’s looking at schools as far as Notre Dame, Miami, Oklahoma State and Oregon and as close as Georgia and Tennessee.
“We don’t care,” Mrs. Holloman says. “I’ve always been the parent who said, ‘If you do what you’re supposed to do in high school, I will never stand in your way. If you’ve earned your right to go to that dream school, who am I to stand in your way?’ That’s something I do not believe in. I will not hinder them…ever.
“My thing is I would hate for them to choose a school I chose and then they hate it. Then they get to turn around and blame me and I will never ever be the blame for their future.”
There are many other factors that will be more important to the Hollomans than arranging air travel if necessary.
“He’s a wide receiver, so I check stats and I check stats from when the head coach started,” Mrs. Holloman says. “I check wide receiver/coach stats. I see who he’s got into the NFL if anybody. I see once they’ve gotten into the NFL what they’ve done with themselves.
“I also pay attention to what people who graduated from the school or went to the NFL, what they say about the university they left because it speaks volumes. You can tell me anything in the world, but if your wide receivers are talking smack about you, that speaks volumes. I’m not there, I’m not in your house yet.”
Academics will play a role as well for J.J., who wants to major in Marketing or Sports Management.
“You are always one practice and one game away from never playing again,” his mother says. “Injuries happen all of the time. Whatever school you choose – you and God select – make sure it’s a place you would want to go even if football wasn’t a part of it. If something happens, you still have to be there. Make sure you love it enough past football.
“If something happens and you’re not in the NFL – at some point football ends – you want that degree to hold up for something. They’re making money off you and they’re saying, ‘We’re going to give you a degree in return.’ So make it count.”
Campus and how he feels he fits in with the people on campus will also be factors.