Longhorn Legends: Football Hall of Honor Inductee Priest Holmes
Publication: Texas Sports
Date: October 31, 2007
Growing up in San Antonio, Priest Holmes was never far from the traditions of The University of Texas and now his accomplishments will be commemorated in the Longhorn Hall of Honor along with other UT legends.
“It is an amazing privilege to be inducted into The University of Texas Hall of Honor,” Holmes said. “Having my name associated with so many other accomplished Longhorn athletes and administrators is very humbling. Growing up in San Antonio I was heavily influenced by the legendary UT tradition. Therefore, this accolade is a fulfillment of a childhood aspiration.”
Holmes was an outstanding running back for the Longhorns. He was named Most Valuable Player of the 1994 Sun Bowl, in which Texas defeated No. 19 North Carolina, 35-31, rushing for 161 yards and four touchdowns. After sitting out the 1995 season with a torn ACL, Holmes came back his senior season rushing for 324 yards on 59 carries with 13 touchdowns, the sixth-highest single-season TD total in school history. In the 1996 Big 12 Championship game, Holmes rushed for 120 yards and three TDs to help secure a victory over No. 3 Nebraska where the Longhorns triumphed as the inaugural Big 12 Champions.
“I saw first hand why Priest should be in the Hall of Honor because of the fourth quarter he had against North Carolina that upset us when we had a 10-point lead with nine minutes left to go in the Sun Bowl,” Coach Mack Brown remembered. “He’s not only a Hall of Honor person at The University of Texas, but will be in the National Football Hall of Fame in my estimation before he gets through.”
Holmes completed his Longhorn career with 252 carries for 1,276 yards (5.1 avg.) and 20 touchdowns.
After finishing his collegiate career, Holmes joined the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent where he aided the team in winning Super Bowl XXXV. He later signed with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2000 where in his first season with the squad rushed for 1,555 yards becoming the NFL’s leading rusher for the 2001 NFL season. Holmes’ success continued in Kansas City. The following season, even with missing the final two games because of injury, Holmes rushed for 1,615 and 21 touchdowns. During the 2003 season, he broke Marshall Faulk’s NFL record for total touchdowns in a season with 27. Holmes joins Emmitt Smith as the only other running back in NFL history to have back to back seasons with 20 or more rushing touchdowns.
