The grandson of an emancipated slave and son of the first African-American employee at NASA, Condredge Holloway was destined to be a trailblazer just bearing the last name Holloway. In addition to being a successful quarterback at Lee High School in Huntsville, Ala., he was also a star baseball player and the fourth overall pick in the 1971 MLB Draft by the Montreal Expos. Holloway’s mother, Dorothy, was required to sign the contract since Alabama law declared the 17-year-old too young to sign a contract, but she refused, insisting that he go to college.
Regarded as the “the best high school athlete I've ever seen" by his high school basketball coach Jerry Dugan, Holloway created an intense recruiting battle as a three-sport athlete. He received a recruiting letter from legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden, and Tennessee assistant Ray Trail essentially resided in Huntsville during Holloway’s senior year. Both Alabama and Auburn showed interest in Holloway but not as a quarterback. College Football Hall of Fame coach Paul “Bear” Bryant was brutally honest with him, saying “Alabama wasn't ready for a black quarterback.”
"I respect Bear Bryant for telling me the truth," Holloway told AL.com in 2011 around the release of the ESPN documentary “The Color Orange: The Condredge Holloway Story."
Condredge eventually signed with Tennessee and coach Bill Battle, the 2008 recipient of the NFF Outstanding Contribution to Amateur Football Award and current Alabama athletics director.
“Coach Battle gave me an opportunity and he said, ‘if you’re good enough to play quarterback at Tennessee, then you’re going to be our quarterback.’” Holloway told ESPN in 2011. “After that, everything else was just gravy. All the outside distractions never got in the way of our team concept.”
The Holloway hype reached a crescendo at a freshman game against Notre Dame with 31,000 fans packing Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn.
“I think the record before that was 500 [fans],” Battle told AL.com in 2011.
As a sophomore, Holloway took over as the starting quarterback for a Volunteers team that finished the prior season 11-1 after defeating Air Force in the Sugar Bowl. Becoming the first African-American starting quarterback in the Southeastern Conference, he led Tennessee to a 10-2 record, capped off by a 24-17 victory in the Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl over No. 10 LSU, quarterbacked by 2016 College Football Hall of Fame inductee Bert Jones. Holloway threw a 32-yard touchdown pass, and he ran for two scores in the game. He finished the season with 73 completions for 807 yards and three touchdowns, ranking in the top-10 of the conference in all categories. Earning the nickname of “The Artful Dodger,” Holloway also ran for 266 yards and three touchdowns.
“Our focus was trying to win ballgames and to be the best we could be. All the social issues could be handled by somebody else,” Holloway told ESPN regarding the racial issues he faced.
As a junior in 1973, Holloway helped Tennessee to an 8-4 record and an appearance in the Gator Bowl against Texas Tech. He threw for 190 yards and a touchdown in the 28-19 loss. A First Team All-SEC selection, Holloway led the conference in completion percentage (57.8), yards per attempt (7.6), passer rating (136.7) and total touchdowns (14). He completed 89 passes for 1,149 yards and 10 touchdowns, along with 128 carries for 433 yards and four touchdowns.
In his final season, Holloway led the Vols to a 7-3-2 finish and a 7-3 win over Maryland in the 1974 Liberty Bowl. He completed 76 passes for 1,146 yards and five touchdowns and ran for 267 yards and two scores. Holloway finished his Tennessee career with 238 completions for 3,102 yards and 18 touchdowns, along with 351 carries for 966 yards and nine touchdowns. He left Tennessee with the best touchdown-interception ratio with just 12 interceptions in 407 pass attempts.
In addition to being the first African-American quarterback in the SEC, Holloway was also the first black baseball player at Tennessee. An All-America shortstop in 1975, he finished with a .353 career batting average, and he owns the school’s longest hitting streak at 27 games. Holloway was selected to Tennessee's All-Century Baseball Team, making him the school’s only student-athlete named to all-century squads in baseball and football.
Holloway was selected in the 12th round (306th overall) of the 1975 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots as a defensive back, but he was also drafted by the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He met with then-Patriots coach Chuck Fairbanks to discuss what his role would be on the team. Fairbanks told Holloway he would be used as a goal-line quarterback running the option. The Alouettes traded Holloway’s rights to the Ottawa Rough Riders, and he signed with the Rough Riders for the 1975 season after General Manager Frank Clair made five trips to the U.S. to persuade Holloway.
“I was ecstatic that somebody wanted me to play quarterback,” Holloway told ESPN in 2011.
Holloway played for the Rough Riders from 1975-80, earning All-Star honors in 1978 after completing 132 passes for 1,970 yards and 12 touchdowns. In 1976, he helped Ottawa to a Grey Cup Championship. Holloway later signed with the Toronto Argonauts, and he started for the Argonauts from 1981-86. A two-time All-Star in 1982 and 1983, he was named the league MVP in 1982 after throwing for 4,661 yards and 31 touchdowns. In 1983, Holloway won his second Grey Cup Championship. Battling the flu, he still managed to play the first half and throw a touchdown pass in the 18-17 victory over the British Columbia Lions.
Holloway was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 1999. He finished his professional career with 1,710 completions for 25,193 yards and 155 touchdowns. Holloway also ran for 3,167 yards and 13 touchdowns on 535 carries. He is also a member of the Alabama and Tennessee Sports Halls of Fame, as well as the Tennessee Baseball Hall of Fame.
He is in his 17th year within the Tennessee athletic department, currently serving as the assistant Athletics Director for Student-Athlete Relations/Lettermen at his alma mater.
