Nate Holley (born December 5, 1994) is 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 ...

for the

Birmingham Stallions The Birmingham Stallions were a franchise in the United States Football League, an attempt to establish a second professional league of American football in the United States in competition with the National Football League. They played their h ...

of the

United States Football League The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...

(USFL). Holley played high school football at

Whitmer High School Whitmer High School is a public high school in Toledo, Ohio, named for John Wallace Whitmer, an educator who helped organize high school classes for the area. Whitmer History, accessed January 25, 2013. It is the only high school in the Washingto ...

in Toledo, Ohio. He played

NCAA 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 o ...

Kent State Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in Ash ...

. He has also been a member of the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...

Nebraska Danger The Nebraska Danger was a professional indoor football team based in Grand Island, Nebraska, and a member of the Indoor Football League (IFL). The team was founded in 2011 by Charlie Bosselman as an expansion member of the IFL. The Danger played ...

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...

, and

Calgary Stampeders The Calgary Stampeders are a professional Canadian football team based in Calgary, Alberta. The Stampeders compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The club plays its home games at McMahon Stadium and are the third-old ...

College career

Holley played four seasons at

, appearing in 43 games for the Golden Flashes, contributing with 424 tackles, three sacks and one interception. He finished his collegiate career in the top 10 on the Golden Flashes’ all-time tackles list. During his senior season, he led the nation with an average of 8.9 solo tackles per game. For his career, he had 426 total tackles including 15 tackles for loss, three sacks, one interception, two forced fumbles and seven pass breakups. He was named first-team all-Mid-American Conference in 2014 and 2015.

Professional career

Early career

After going undrafted in the

2017 NFL Draft The 2017 NFL Draft was the 82nd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. It was held in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art on April 27–29, returning to Philadelphia f ...

Holley signed with the

, but was later released. He signed with the

Indoor Football League The Indoor Football League (IFL) is a professional indoor American football league created in 2008 out of the merger between the Intense Football League and United Indoor Football. It has one of the largest number of currently active teams amon ...

’s

on May 22, 2018; Holley played in only 2 games with Nebraska, but still put up an impressive 23 tackles and a forced fumble. Holley next signed with the

on June 8, 2018, but was waived at the conclusion of training camp.

Calgary Stampeders

Holley signed with the

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

(CFL) on May 19, 2019. Holley had a very productive first season in the league, playing in all 18 regular season games and contributing with 78 defensive tackles, 22 special teams tackles, one sack and one interception. Following the season he was named the league's

Most Outstanding Rookie The Most Outstanding Rookie Award is annually awarded to the player judged to be the best player in his first year in the Canadian Football League. The two nominees for the award are the Frank M. Gibson Trophy winner from the East Division, and th ...

. On February 14, 2020, the CFLPA filed a grievance against the CFL on behalf of Holley. Holley sought to be released from his contract so he could pursue NFL opportunities, as was the agreement when he signed his two-year contract the year prior. In late April, after the NFL window had closed, the CFLPA announced that they were taking Holley's case to arbitration. The CFL cancelled their 2020 season on August 17, and Holley was released from his contract two days later.

Miami Dolphins

Holley had a tryout with the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...

on August 21, 2020. He signed with the team the next day. He was waived on September 5, 2020, and signed to the practice squad the next day. He was elevated to the active roster on December 5 and December 9 for the team's weeks 13 and 14 games against the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...

and

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

, and reverted to the practice squad after each game. He was promoted to the active roster on January 2, 2021. On August 31, 2021, Holley was waived by the Dolphins.

Toronto Argonauts

On November 3, 2021, it was announced that Holley had signed with the

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), based in Toronto, Ontario ...

. However, on November 17, 2021, the league announced that they would not register his contract due to a violation with their Violence Against Women Policy.

Birmingham Stallions

On March 10, 2022, Holley was drafted by the

of the

. He was placed on injured reserve on May 19, 2022, with a lower leg injury.

Personal life

Holley has a twin named Nick, who is a

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

. They played college football together at Kent State and were on the

and

together. In early November 2016 Holley was charged with felony kidnapping and assault. He was immediately suspended by the NCAA and released by the Kent State Golden Flashes football program. In February 2017, three months after being charged, Holley was found not guilty.

References

External links

Kent State bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holley, Nate 1994 births Living people American players of Canadian football Canadian football linebackers Canadian Football League Rookie of the Year Award winners Kent State Golden Flashes football players Nebraska Danger players Players of American football from Ohio Sportspeople from Toledo, Ohio Los Angeles Rams players Calgary Stampeders players Miami Dolphins players American football linebackers Birmingham Stallions (2022) players