Holyfield making a name for himself
Invariably, every time Georgia running back Elijah Holyfield conducts an interview he’s asked about his famous father — former heavyweight boxing champion Evander Holyfield.
It’s a scenario the Bulldog junior finds himself in quite often.
No, he doesn’t have a problem. Elijah Holyfield loves his dad and is proud of his accomplishments, and happily answers questions, although he was just a baby toward the end of his father’s storied career.
But as Georgia opponents are starting to learn, the Bulldog junior isn’t bad himself. With apologies to the elder Holyfield, Elijah is looking like the ‘Real Deal.’
In Georgia’s 49-7 victory over Middle Tennessee, Holyfield enjoyed his breakout game, rushing eight times for 100 yards, the first time he’s reached triple digits in three years at the school.
“It (getting 100 yards) is going to make them (Georgia’s other backs) want to get 100 the next time,” Holyfield said. “It’s a friendly competition. I’m sure they’ll probably get 100 this next game or two.”
Count Kirby Smart as a huge Holyfield fan. His toughness helps him stand out, noting the same effort fans see during the same is the same effort he sees in practice every day.
“He practices tough, physical. Every day for him is physical. There is not a day he goes out there and says, ‘I’m taking this day off or I’m not going full speed today’.’ ” Smart said.
“He’s not a guy you have to motivate. He loves the game. He practices hard. I think he really likes competition because when he gets thudded by a guy, he always likes to come back and get that guy back. You kind of see that out there in his play. He likes contact and he’s a bowling ball. He’s hard to bring down. He’s really tough.”
Just ask safety J.R. Reed, whose been charged with the task of trying to bring down the 215-pounder in practice. It’s not easy to do.
“He’s probably one of the most physical backs we’ve seen,” Reed said. “He’s learned from Nick (Chubb) and Sony (Michel) and how to practice. He pushes us in the secondary and the defense to really get after it. He does a good job. He’s probably one of the hardest backs in the SEC to bring down.”
Holyfield said the lessons he learned playing behind Michel and Chubb the previous two season have proven invaluable.
“Just how the way it works, how to move on to the next game, no matter if you had a good or bad day. They said to just try and get better,” Holyfield said. “They were very good leaders on our team. They really led us the whole way last year so I knew I would have to take on some of that role and leadership, too.”
The Bulldogs no doubt like what they’ve seen.
After rushing for 293 yards on 50 carries as season ago, Holyfield enters Saturday’s game at Missouri (Noon ET, ESPN) as Georgia’s top rusher with 22 carries for 200 yards.
“I’ve learned that good things come to those who wait,” said Holyfield. “Everybody says you want to come in and start but the likelihood of you starting over Nick and Sony is pretty slim. I knew I’d have to wait for my time.”
He’s certainly getting plenty of chances now, and in doing so is proving he’s more of a complete back than many bargained for. Although he’s still working on becoming a better receiver, Holyfield has proven to be a faster back than many thought he would be as indicated by last week’s 66-yard run against MTSU.
Holyfield didn’t score on the play, but it showed that notion about him not being an effective perimeter runner was just wrong.
“I don’t know if they’re (defenders) are surprised or not,” Holyfield said. “But I know I’m a pretty fast guy if I line up and run, although some people act surprised because I am so big.”
