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Holloman visits Michigan and Notre Dame
Jason Pughe
Updated April 24, 2008...
DeVonte Holloman is one of the most sought after prospects in the nation. He has offers from Florida, Clemson, North Carolina, NC State, Auburn, South Carolina, Georgia, Notre Dame, Stanford, LSU, Michigan, Oregon, and Tennessee. This past weekend, Holloman visited the campuses of Michigan and Notre Dame.
“The Michigan visit was pretty awesome,” Holloman said. “I got to sit down with Coach (Rich) Rodriguez and the defensive coordinator (Coach Scott Shafer) and Coach (Tony) Gibson. Those guys really impressed me especially the defensive coordinator. He’s one of those fiery type guys when it comes to football and I turn into that type of guy when it comes to football too. Everything that Michigan has to offer impressed me, from the academics to their football coaches. Their strength and conditioning coach (Mike Barwis) is crazy. Mike Barwis is a guy that a lot of people are starting to hear about and I actually got to meet the guy.”
The strength and conditioning aspect at Michigan is definitely something that Holloman can relate to. At Independence High School, the talented safety works out 90 minutes a day. Part of the reason for the Charlotte school’s dominance over the last decade is attributed to their strength and conditioning program. On Saturday, Holloman drove from Michigan to Notre Dame’s campus and visited with their coaches.
“The Notre Dame visit was okay and I got to meet Coach (Charlie) Weis,” he said. “He’s been to all levels and won a championship. I spent a good deal of time and talked with Coach Corwin Brown. He’s the main one that’s recruiting me. The best part was meeting Coach Weis and meeting other players that he has recruited in the past. Just meeting Coach Weis in itself was pretty awesome.”
Recently, the University of Oregon has stepped up their recruiting efforts and Holloman is definitely interested in the Ducks as well.
“I like Oregon and everything they have to offer,” he said. “The problem would be my parents and if they would let me go that far. Oregon is on the other side of the country so it would be up to my parents, but I am very interested in Oregon. They get to do a lot of things like test out new Nike stuff. It is exciting to be recruiting by them.”
While location won’t play a big factor, going to school in Eugene might be too far. In addition to that, there are some other factors that will effect Holloman’s decision.
“I have visited three schools and got a good look at them,” Holloman said. “The things that have appealed to me are the coaches, academics, and their future plans. Everybody has a different plan for academics, so I am looking for the best option and how it will affect me. Location really isn’t going to be a factor unless you are talking about Oregon or something. The drive to Michigan wasn’t bad at all, but the Notre Dame drive was a killer. Location isn’t that big of a factor anymore. All three schools were good visits and there are things that stood out at each school. I just need to make a list and figure out what school is best for me.”
Holloman is still is open and is not ready to name a favorite. There have been rumors circulating as of late that the Clemson Tigers are the leader. Holloman is close friends with other Clemson targets such as Stephon Gilmore, Sam Montgomery, as well as Clemson commit J.K. Jay. Despite those friendships, he’s not sure if that will influence his decision.
“I’m not trying to base it off anybody else,” he said. “But, when you think about that group of guys and that kind of talent, in a couple of years we could be awesome. I want to be a part of something like that. I’m not going to say it depends on them, but I’m not going to say it doesn’t.”
Since Holloman has only visited three schools, he’s not even close to making his decision. His parents want him to take his official visits and then make his decision. Once he has done that, he plans on deciding early in the season so that he can start preparing on enrolling early to college.
“I’m comparing schools to others but I don’t have my list yet,” Holloman said. “It will be done around summer time. I’m planning on enrolling early, so I’m looking to decide like the fourth or fifth week of the season. My parents want me to take all of my official visits, but if I think the place is right I wouldn’t mind putting it out there. We will see how it happens but hopefully by the fourth week I will know.”