SOUTH BRUNSWICK: New grid coach can’t wait to get started

By Rich Fisher, Sports Editor
   It took some of the highest of highs and lowest of lows, but Tarig Holman has finally arrived at the place he wants to be in life.
   Holman feels those experiences, and the men who guided him through them, can be used to maintain South Brunswick High’s recent football success.
   The recently hired Vikings head coach certainly does have a somewhat different resume than a lot of high school coaches in this area.
   Originally from Cincinnati, Holman eventually landed at Randolph High School, where during his senior year he was ranked as one of the Top 100 players nationally by Tom Lemming, who was just starting his prep rankings that are now on ESPN.com.
   After being courted by several Big 10 teams, Holman landed at Iowa where he earned All-Big 10 honors as a defensive back while playing under Hall of Fame coach Hayden Fry. He graduated in 1999 with a degree in English, then took an internship in athletic administration with Iowa for a semester.
   From there, he signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a free agent. Up to then, life had been good.
   Then things changed.
   Running back a kickoff, Holman tore his hamstring and some of the ligaments that attached to his knee. He had already undergone three knee surgeries in college, so this latest mishap had him feeling low. Especially since he had been playing well in camp.
   Rather than go on injured reserve, Holman took an injury settlement from Tampa Bay, who wanted him to play in Europe. He passed on that and was drafted by the Memphis Maniacs of the Xtreme Football League.
   ”I figured if I played there, I could stay in the states, and if I do well and the NFL rolls around, I’ll be right there and ready to try it again,” Holman said. “So we went to Las Vegas for training camp and it was the most competitive camp I’ve ever been to in my life. Guys were playing for their careers.”
   The XFL did not work out, however. After a talk with his dad, Lansing, the former University of Cincinnati track & field coach, Holman gave up the dream.
   The two met in Savannah, Ga., and on the ride home one of Holman’s biggest influences delivered an inspiring talk.
   ”It was like driving out to Iowa for my first recruiting trip,” Holman said. “Then it was college talk. This was talk about growing up and being a man.”
   Indeed, he had reached a crossroads at age 22 but wasted little time turning things around. He began substitute teaching at Mount Olive High School, an old Randolph rival, and became an assistant football coach.
   From there, a fortuitous errand opened some doors.
   ”My mom sent me to the grocery store one day and I ran into Ron Stanridge, my high school phys-ed teacher,” Holman said. “He was the athletic director at New Brunswick and had just hired John Quinn as head coach. John had coached at Union and knew of me from high school.”
   Quicker than you could say touchdown, Holman was a full-time English teacher and an assistant football coach for the Zebras. He also served as head coach of a track program that had 11 future Division I athletes on the roster.
   Three years later Holman taught at Highland Park, remained on New Brunswick’s football staff and took over as HP’s track coach.
   Two years ago he arrived at South Brunswick and one week ago he got the kind of job he always wanted.
   ”I’m very optimistic and very excited about this team,” said Holman, whose younger brother Austin is also on the Vikings staff. “I can’t wait to actually get out there and start with the guys. That’s what I cherish the most, the on-the-field time you have with kids, the stuff at practice.
   ”I’m a teacher and that’s where significant learning comes, at practice. If you can get it out of them on the practice field, the game takes care of itself.”
   Holman will put his own imprint on the team, but can draw from some of the greats he learned under.
   His dad always preached that a person finish what he starts. Randolph coaches John Bauer Sr. and Jr., whose program set a state record for consecutive wins, stressed effort, hard work and belief in one’s teammates.
   Fry was a master motivator who believed in delegating authority to his assistants. As an assistant coach, Holman learned from Quinn and the man he replaced, Rick Mantz.
   ”John Quinn was a master at being prepared; he showed me what it took to be a high school football coach,” said Holman, who hopes to keep the current Vikings staff intact. “Coach Mantz is probably the most organized person I’ve ever seen in my life. He’s meticulous.”
   From them all comes Holman, who has gone from NFL hopeful to family man. He and wife, Kimberly, have a 6-month-old daughter, Leia, and life is good once more.
   ”It’s what was supposed to happen,” he said. “I’m not the most religious person but I always feel God has a plan for you.
   ”When you’re young, you sometimes still have to understand who you are. I love football, but looking back there were aspects of the NFL that weren’t for me, in general. Right now, I’m in a place where I absolutely love what I do.”
   And he took quite a trip to get there.