8/12/2023 football Edit

Hollin Pierce details long journey from Trenton to Rutgers Football

Craig Epstein • TheKnightReport

Staff Writer

Standing at 6-foot-8, 340 pounds, one would look at Rutgers offensive lineman Hollin Pierce and assume he spent much of his life on the gridiron. However, that is not the case as the big man did not start playing until the end of his high school tenure.

"I started playing my senior year of high school so I wasn't really polished in football," Pierce said. "I didn't have many offers coming out of high school but I always wanted Rutgers so when I got the call from there I always put in the work."

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Coming out of Fork Union Military Academy (Va.), Pierce put in a lot of work to get down to a comfortable playing weight. He attributes a lot of that to those around him, especially strength and conditioning coach Jay Butler.

"I feel completely different, when I first walked into Fork Union I was 455 pounds and when I left I was 421," he said. "When I finally got the call to come here I was about 390 and they got me down to 320 so you can see from there that's a huge change."

Despite entering the team as a walk-on, Pierce made the most of the opportunities provided to him and wrapped up a sophomore season starting all 12 games at right tackle. He was also named a candidate for the Burlsworth Trophy which honors the most outstanding football player who began his career as a walk-on.

"Things don't come fast, they take time," he explained. "But when you keep working at it you'll start to notice the thing you were working on that was really difficult will eventually not be as difficult. Then you have your next challenge and you just keep knocking those down."

As Pierce enters his junior year with the program, this marks the first season he will work with new offensive line coach Pat Flaherty. Although this is Flaherty's first year with the Scarlet Knights, he brings along decades worth of football knowledge which Pierce feels will help him get to the next level.

"He's been around the game for so long and always just evolves with his knowledge of the game," Pierce said. "Everybody knows where he's been, what he's done, and where he's coached. He's a tremendous coach and his knowledge of the game and every position on the offensive line is just tremendous. The knowledge and feedback he gives us really helps and I see it in how I play and feel about the game."

Although he is a giant on the football field, Pierce understands he must also come up big in the classroom and believes the amount of effort he puts into blocking should equal the time spent on his studies.

"One thing the coaches always emphasize to us is grades," he said. "Football is obviously a high priority but grades always come first. I realize coming from a prep school college is going to be challenging but you gotta put the time into the classroom just like you do on the field."