Penn Hills grad Hollis Mathis thriving as captain, hybrid offensive weapon at William & Mary

By: Josh Rizzo
Sunday, September 15, 2024 | 11:01 AM

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Williams & Mary’s football program would have difficulty having a captain that fit one of their offensive mottos better than Hollis Mathis.

Effort, Adaptability and Toughness (EAT) is one of The Tribe’s mantras for this season. There may not be many athletes across college football as adaptable as Hollis, a sixth-year senior who saw his role shift throughout his career.

The 2019 Penn Hills graduate came to the Williamsburg, Va., campus expecting to play quarterback. But as time went on, Mathis, who quarterbacked Penn Hills to a WPIAL and PIAA Class Class 5A title in 2018, returned punts, caught passes and was asked to carry the ball out of the backfield.

During William & Mary’s season-opening win against VMI, Mathis scored two touchdowns, one rushing and one receiving. Mathis also completed a pass for 27 yards.

“I’ve been playing quarterback since I was 8 in the PHMFA,” Mathis said. “They allowed me to stop playing all-time quarterback. It freed me to run around.”

Mathis saw the most time at quarterback during his freshman season in 2019 when he passed for 976 yards with four touchdowns and three interceptions. Mathis also ran 141 times for 546 yards and eight scores that year.

Last season, Mathis set a career-high in receiving yards by catching 27 passes for 373 yards.

He has 109 yards on seven catches during The Tribe’s first two games this season. He should set a new career high if he stays healthy.

Mathis said his ability to play anywhere on offense comes from his background. Playing quarterback through middle school and high school forced him to learn everyone else’s jobs.

“I had a good understanding of offense in general,” Mathis said. “I do a little bit of everyone’s jobs. They like to try and utilize my skill set and athleticism.”

Mathis was pleased to be chosen as a captain on this year’s team. He missed out on the honor by a vote or two in previous seasons.

Mathis said he enjoys the role of being a leader. He said he met someone on campus during his sophomore year who talked to him about Jesus and the idea of servant leadership.

“If you want to help people achieve your goal as a leader, you have to help other people,” Mathis said. “I’m trying to get to know all of my teammates to figure out what people want and what drives people. I want to better align myself to help them and help us.”

Mathis would like to try to help William & Mary get back to the playoffs for the second time since he came to campus. The Tribe reached the FCS quarterfinals in 2022.

Mathis would like to reward the place that made him comfortable. That’s why he never considered going the transfer portal route.

“When I came to Williams & Mary, I was told I was making a decision for the next 40 years and not the next four,” said Mathis, who is pursuing his MBA. “It was a happy accident to find a great school for athletics and academics.”

Tags: Penn Hills