With just over three weeks to go until the season gets underway, it’s time to take a look at last year’s RB1, the man with two separate 1,000 yard seasons under his belt, George Holani.

#24, George Holani, Redshirt Senior, Running Back

Credit: Broncosports.com

Stats

Height: 5’11

Weight: 209

High school: St. John Bosco High School, Bellflower, CA

How’d he get to The Blue™?

Holani was a rare get for the Broncos, a 4 star recruit. Ranked the 19th best running back in his class by 247Sports, Holani had offers from most of the major Pac 12 (…Pac 4?) schools. He was considered a 50/50 toss up, with the 247 crystal ball saying it was either the Broncos or the Utes that would land the highly touted running back. George made the call to join the Broncos in a twitter post that got quite a bit of coverage, even getting an article from USA Today High School Sports.

Nickname

GH1K

In his freshman year, George pushed the incredible streak of 1,000 yard rushers to 11 years in a row. Sadly, 2020 happened, and that was just not feasible. 2021 was a rough year, with injuries hampering Holani, but 2022 was a return to form, as Holani smashed the 1K mark, putting up 1157 yards to lead the team.

Look-alike

Apr 8, 2022; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; New York Mets second baseman Robinson Cano (24) before the game against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

I liked when Robinson Cano played for the other team in New York better personally, but I do think him and George look similar. Bonus, Cano wore 24 for Mets, so they used to share a number!

Career Highlights

George is well on his way to being known as a BSU great. His production both in the run game and the pass game have been excellent, and he has earned the RB1 spot for all of the years he has been a Bronco. He hit his career high for single game rushing last year, going for 157 yards against Fresno, and has racked up a ton of awards, both athletically and academically. He was the 2019 Mountain West Freshman of the Year, has been on the All-Mountain West Second Team twice, and is on this years Preseason All-Mountain West First team. He also is on the Maxwell Award Preseason Watch List and the Paul Hornung Award Watch List this year.

2023 Prospectus

The Broncos, for the first time in a while, have a stable of backs. Holani is joined by Ashton Jeanty and Jambres “Breezy” Dubar in the backfield, but the expectation is that Holani will still be RB1 come opening night. 1000 yards is on the docket again this year, and I would expect him to make All-Mountain West again. The final nail in the coffin? Expect Holani to hear his name called in April at the Draft.

Also, as luck would have it, he and Jeanty met with the media today, so you can hear his thoughts on a number of things, straight from the horse’s mouth!

Is he on Twitter?

Indeed. Check out GH1K on twitter @GeorgeHolani.

Completely made up fact

George, much like Dash from the Incredibles, has to slow down when he plays football to allow for the fans to see him. If he ran at full speed, it would simply be a blur.

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