Holloway's play helps Jackets reach 6A title game
Dec. 3—Chris Jones has a hard time explaining why Ny'Jadus Holloway is such a good football player. He just is.
Holloway is Starkville's senior inside linebacker and the defense's biggest playmaker. The 6-foot-2, 225-pounder leads the team in tackles with 165, plus he has 30 tackles-for-loss and two interceptions.
One of those interceptions came in last week's 41-32 win over Tupelo in the Class 6A North final, leading to a critical touchdown in the fourth quarter.
"We were joking the other day, it's like you created one of those players that don't look the part on Madden, but you up all the attributes," said Jones, Starkville's sixth-year head coach. "He's out there just compiling stats. He's a tackling machine, he's always making plays, and he's been like that for a while."
Holloway and the Yellowjackets (11-3) face Brandon (12-1) at 7 p.m. today in Hattiesburg for the 6A state championship. Brandon boasts an offense that averages 242.6 rushing yards and 240.4 passing yards per game.
"It's just any given game being able to do what we want to do," Brandon coach Sam Williams said. "... If it's a run-heavy game plan, it works out great for us, and if it's a pass-heavy game plan, it works out great for us."
Quarterback Landon Varnes has thrown for 3,066 yards and 24 touchdowns, while running back Nate Blount has 1,805 yards and 24 TDs rushing.
"Brandon's a tempo team — they play really fast," Jones said. "That's where they get a lot of success from. They try to catch you not lined up and take some shots, get some explosive plays off of those."
It's Holloway's job to make sure the Starkville defense is lined up properly. He has a knack himself for being in the right spot, which is more a product of his football I.Q. than raw ability.
"His awareness, his football knowledge, he really understands what other teams are trying to do," Jones said. "... It's hard to explain, because he's not running a 4.4, he's not the strongest, he's not the fastest. He just makes plays."
