Hugo Andrew Hollas (November 30, 1945September 6, 1995) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to risk management, the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL) for the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

and

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

. He also was a member of the

San Antonio Wings The San Antonio Wings were an American football team who played in the World Football League in 1975. The team started as the Florida Blazers in 1974, then moved to San Antonio in 1975 and became the San Antonio Wings. History The Florida Blazers ...

in the

World Football League The World Football League (WFL) was an American football league that played one full season in 1974 and most of its second in 1975. Although the league's proclaimed ambition was to bring American football onto a worldwide stage, the farthest t ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Rice University William Marsh Rice University (Rice University) is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas. It is on a 300-acre campus near the Houston Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is ranke ...

Early years

Hollas attended Bishop Forest High School. He accepted a football scholarship from

, where he was a three-year starter at

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

. As a senior, he received All-SWC honors, after leading the team with 5 interceptions.

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

Hollas was signed as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

by the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...

after the

1968 NFL Draft The 1968 National Football League draft was part of the common draft, in the second year in which the NFL and AFL held a joint draft of college players. It took place at the Belmont Plaza Hotel in New York City on January 30–31, 1968. The Min ...

. He was limited with a thumb injury he suffered in training camp. He was waived injured before the start of the season on July 31.

Richmond Roadrunners

In 1969, he signed with the

Richmond Roadrunners The Richmond Roadrunners/Richmond Saints were an Atlantic Coast Football League team that played four seasons from 1967 to 1970. They were affiliated with the New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football tea ...

of the Atlantic Coast Football League. He led the league in interceptions.

New Orleans Saints

In 1970, he was signed by the

as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

, reuniting with head coach

J. D. Roberts John David Roberts (October 24, 1932 – May 25, 2021) was an American college and professional football coach. He was the head coach of the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL) from the middle of the 1970 season until hi ...

, who was also his coach with the Richmond Roadrunners. He earned the starter job at

free safety Safety is a position in gridiron football on the defense. The safeties are defensive backs who line up ten to fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. There are two variations of the position: the free safety and the strong safety. Their dut ...

and also played some snaps at

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create tur ...

, while leading the team with 5 interceptions. In 1971, when future

Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, , the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coach ...

r Archie Manning joined the Saints, he discovered that the No. 18 jersey he wore at the

University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi (byname Ole Miss) is a public research university that is located adjacent to Oxford, Mississippi, and has a medical center in Jackson. It is Mississippi's oldest public university and its largest by enrollment. ...

was taken by Hollas, so he was forced to choose No. 8 instead. He tied for the team lead with 5 interceptions that season. In 1972, he was limited with injuries, but still managed to play in all 14 games, while moving to

strong safety Safety is a position in gridiron football on the defense. The safeties are defensive backs who line up ten to fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. There are two variations of the position: the free safety and the strong safety. Their dut ...

in the latter part of the season. In 1973, he suffered a torn knee ligaments injury, while playing a preseason game against the

. On August 21, he was placed on the

injured reserve list The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

. He was released on September 10, 1974. Hollas registered five interceptions in each of his first two seasons and ended up appearing in 39 games with 31 starts. He finished with 11 career interceptions and 4 fumble recoveries.

San Francisco 49ers

In October 1974, Hollas called the

, after seeing on television, safety

Mel Phillips Melvin Phillips (born January 6, 1942), is a former American professional football player who played his entire 12-year NFL career with the San Francisco 49ers. Coaching career Phillips coached the defensive backs for the Detroit Lions from 1980 ...

suffering a broken arm injury against the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...

, and arranged a tryout through

Don Heinrich Donald Alan Heinrich (September 19, 1930 – February 29, 1992) was an American football player, coach, and announcer. He played professionally as a quarterback in National Football League (NFL) for the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys, and in ...

, who was an assistant coach with the Saints during Hollas' rookie year. On November 1, he signed with the 49ers as a

. He appeared in 7 games as a backup

and

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

player. He wasn't re-signed after the season.

San Antonio Wings

In June 1975, he signed with the

of the

. He played 18 games at

Personal life

Hollas died in Schulenburg, Texas on September 6, 1995, at the age of 49 from a heart attack.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hollas, Hugo 1945 births 1995 deaths People from Schulenburg, Texas Players of American football from Texas American football safeties Rice Owls football players New Orleans Saints players San Francisco 49ers players San Antonio Wings players