5/29/2020 football Edit

Catching up with ... Joe Holland

Joe Holland barely played defense in high school. No matter, he transitioned from running back to linebacker at Purdue and thrived as a four-year starter.

Tom Dienhart • BoilerUpload

GoldandBlack.com, Associate Editor

Former Purdue linebacker Joe Holland never will forget an elevator ride he took with Joe Tiller early in his Boilermaker career.

"It was just me and him riding up in the old complex," said Holland. "I could tell he was staring at me, burning a hole right through me. And he said to me right before the elevator doors opened: 'Are you gonna make anything of yourself while you are here?' Before I could say anything, the doors opened and he was gone."

Holland didn't take the comment personally. But it certainly motivated him.

"I wanted to be the best I could," said Holland.

No doubt, Holland maxed out his ability during a strong career at Purdue.

He arrived on campus with a fat scrapbook after an uber successful career at Indianapolis power Bishop Chatard High, where he rushed for 2,048 yards on 239 carries (8.6 average) and 35 touchdowns during his senior season. Holland set the Chatard record for career rushing yards (5,270).

The 6-1, 229-pound Holland transitioned from offense to defense and went on to a strong career in West Lafayette, totaling 324 career tackles and starting 48 games with the Boilermakers from 2008-2011 after redshirting in 2007. He was a co-captain his senior season, a four-year starter and a two-time Academic All-American.

Indeed, Holland made a lot of himself at Purdue.

Holland enjoyed a cup-of-coffee NFL career, toiling on several practice squads before enrolling in dental school.

GoldandBlack.com caught up with the 31-year-old Holland this week.

GoldandBlack.com: What was your inspiration to become a dentist?

Holland: I went to Purdue with the plan to be some sort of doctor, just didn't know what field. The beauty of being on the football team was you were exposed to a roomful of doctors and athletic trainers. So, I had a board of people I could bounce ideas off of in terms of what made a lot of sense career-wise. So, I spoke with a couple of the doctors at Purdue and opted for dental school. Everyone said you can't really go wrong. And I did. I always did have a little bit of an interest in dentistry. And as I got a little bit further along in my college career, I kind of shifted my focus towards that. And thankfully I was accepted into dental school my senior year. And IU allowed me to defer enrollment as I gave the NFL a shot and got thrown onto practice squads. I then was able to go into dental school just one year after my last season in the NFL.

GoldandBlack.com: How long have you been practicing?

Holland: I just finished my second year of private practice (Holland Dental). I purchased the practice January 3rd this year. I had been an associate at a practice in Fishers for a while and that was all going great, and I really loved the doctor I was working with. But part of what drew me to dentistry in the first place was the ability to own your own practice. Since I had graduated from dental school, I began putting out feelers about who was looking to sell. And I was connected with the doctor that I've just purchased the practice from. He was the team dentist for the Colts. It just seemed to make too much sense. I’m on the west side of Indianapolis. The practice I purchased is in the Eagle Creek area.

GoldandBlack.com: Are you married? Any children?

Holland: I’m married. I have an anniversary coming up in June. No kids yet, but our dog keeps us busy.

GoldandBlack.com: How did you end up at Purdue?

Holland: I played tailback at Chatard, which I think even sometimes I forget. I’d never played defense more than a handful of snaps until I got to Purdue. We always ran the ball at Chatard. I kind of thought I potentially would have the chance to play running back in college. And it became pretty clear that that was not really anybody's plan. I was originally recruited as a safety. The only school that even really mentioned the possibility of starting out at tailback was IU. And I really think that was just a way to try to maybe become a more attractive option. But at that point, I kind of accepted the transition to defense and actually looked forward to the transition.

GoldandBlack.com: What other schools did you consider?

Holland: I was actually offered by Northwestern by Randy Walker just a handful of weeks before he ended up passing away. And so I went up there and I met with Pat Fitzgerald and was very impressed by everything. But I went to a game and it really wasn't a big college football environment. The very next week, I went to Purdue and saw it beat Minnesota. The environment, the stadium, everything about that trip was good. That kind of cemented it. Purdue was always the place I wanted to go. It provided the college football experience, provided the academics, the resources and the support ... it had all I needed.

GoldandBlack.com: How tough was it to transition to defense?

Holland: I was wide open to the transition from running back to safety and was looking forward to that. I did not have as open of a mind to the transition from safety to linebacker. I think it was mostly because I got to Purdue at about 205 pounds, and it never came easy to me to gain weight. It was always a struggle to gain size.

GoldandBlack.com: Did anyone talk to you about moving to linebacker from safety?

Holland: (Defensive coordinator/linebackers coach) Brock Spack had mentioned to me in recruitment and during my redshirt year when I was still playing safety that he would love to see me move to linebacker. I think that was probably always the plan. I went through all of my redshirt freshman training camp at safety. And at that time was gonna get in the rotation on nickel and dime situations. I really wasn't gonna play a huge role defensively at that position anyway, and they moved me to outside linebacker right behind Jason Werner. A couple days after they moved me, Jason went down with a season-ending back injury. So, about five days in at linebacker, I was getting ready to start. I took my bumps and bruises that redshirt freshman year. With a little size and a little bit more experience, I got a little better every single year. It really wasn't until my senior year where I really felt like I was well-suited for linebacker and I was playing the position that I should be playing.

GoldandBlack.com: How was your senior year?

Holland: My senior year was a blast because I was fighting. I was bigger and stronger and faster than I've ever had been and things were coming a little more naturally to me than they had in the past. I can't believe how lucky I was to start as many games as I did. And I was in that position by happenstance.

Story continues below photo

Joe Holland matriculated from being a football player to being a dentist.

GoldandBlack.com: What was your highlight at Purdue?

Holland: There are a lot. There are about four or five guys that I played with that I still talk to every single day. That amongst everything is the coolest part of the whole experience. We’ve built some life-long friendships.

GoldandBlack.com: Who are those guys?

Holland: Dan Dierking, Ryan Kerrigan Nick Mondek. There is a guy who walked on for just a season and he's a Navy Seal: Abe Trindle. And Will Thornburg was a manager who I got to know through football. A lot of us look back to that 2009 season (5-7 overall; 4-4 Big Ten), when we had some of the most heartbreaking defeats that I think any of us have ever taken in any sport. And also had some of the most exciting wins that we've also been a part of.

We got both ends of the spectrum during that season with wins at Michigan (38-36), beating No. 7 Ohio State (26-18), beating a ranked Illinois team (24-14). But in that same season, losing to Notre Dame (24-21) on the last play of the game, losing to Oregon (38-36) on the last play of the game, losing to Michigan State (40-37) on the last play of the game. That's one of those “what could have been” seasons.

Beating Ohio State (26-23 OT) my senior year (7-6 overall; 4-4 Big Ten) and beating IU (33-25) to get back to a bowl game (beat Western Michigan 37-32 in Little Caesars Bowl) were as happy as I can remember being.

GoldandBlack.com: What are your memories of Joe Tiller?

Holland: I say it with a lot of pride that I was recruited by Coach Tiller. He was a coach that demanded a lot of his players. He has such a strong presence and still has such a familiar name in college football. I caught him his last two years of his career, and I think he was probably winding down just a little bit. I heard some pretty incredible stories, and the fire was still there. He was kind of restricted in practice to a golf cart. But he was always so funny. He didn't miss a thing. And no matter what was going on, he had a very firm grasp on everything going on in practice. You would see him take off in that golf cart and you just were hoping he wasn't heading in your direction. He was a true football guy through and through.

Joe Holland forged a bond with Ryan Kerrigan while at Purdue that continues to this day.

Membership Info: Sign up for GoldandBlack.com now | Why join? | Questions?

Follow GoldandBlack.com: Twitter | Facebook | YouTube

More: Gold and Black Illustrated/Gold and Black Express | Subscribe to our podcast