Pride of a Tiger

Published 12:00 am Saturday, August 6, 2005

The Selma Times-Journal

Brett Holliman knew he wanted to be an Auburn Tiger from day one. That’s why it was no surprise that he decided to attend Auburn University following his graduation from Morgan Academy. Holliman, however wasn’t recruited to play football heavily by the Tigers, despite that, he still wanted to be a part of the orange and blue tradition.

The opportunity that he’d thought he’d missed out on came in the form of a telephone call.

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"I was pretty excited.&uot;

From the first day of practice, Holliman realized that Southeastern Conference football was very different than that of the Alabama Independent School Association.

Over the first season as a walk-on, Holliman impressed the coaches enough to provide him with a redshirt so he could still have four years of eligibility. During that first season he also found his niche. He became a special teams guy, playing on the kickoff cover, kickoff return and punt return squads.

The Selma native’s hard work paid off and he earned his first start in the 2001 Iron Bowl.

Even with that assignment in mind, Holliman’s first time running out of the tunnel in front of nearly 90,000 rabid football fans was an amazing experience.

After starting every game in 2002 as a walk-on, Holliman hard work finally paid off. In the spring of the 2003 season, Holliman was awarded a football scholarship.

Over the next two season, Holliman made friendships that he feels are pretty strong. In 2004 the Selma native and Morgan Academy grad shared the field with four first round NFL draft picks: Carnell Williams, Ronnie Brown, Carlos Rogers and Jason Campbell.

Holliman also can list being on an undefeated Auburn squad to his list of accomplishments.

With his football days behind him, Holliman now focuses on his education.

Holliman attended Auburn University with the help of a scholarship from the Selma Quarterback Club. The organization gives out scholarships to XXXX senior football players.

Holliman has graduated Auburn University with a Bachelors of Science degree in Agricultural Business and Economics. He is currently working on his Master’s Degree in the same subject.