Why Harper Holloman’s Stats Don’t Tell the Full Story of His Impact

The Mountaineers have an elite pass rusher off the edge in Harper Holloman.

Harper Holloman

One of the top pieces West Virginia landed in its transfer portal class this offseason was Western Kentucky pass rusher Harper Holloman. As a matter of fact, in our initial player rankings of the portal class, I put Holloman fifth behind only RB Cam Cook, OL Wes King, OL Amare Grayson, and S Kamari Wilson.

So far, Holloman has lived up to those lofty expectations and came out of spring ball as the Mountaineers' most consistent pass rushing presence. While the overall stats that he posted at WKU may not necessarily scream elite pass rusher, you have to understand the reasoning behind the numbers.

In our most recent episode of the In The Gun Podcast, Jed Drenning gave a quick explainer on his stat line — 48 pressures, 40 hurries, 39 tackles, seven QB hits, 5.5. TFLs, two sacks — and why those numbers don't fully do him justice.

“What that tells me is that when opposing quarterbacks are watching tape, they are very aware of him. He’s impacting the play without hitting the quarterback, without sacking the quarterback. When you have 40 quarterback hurries, that means the other team’s quarterback, the other team’s tackle, and the other team’s o-line know going in they are on high alert. Watch out for this dude; be ready to get the football out fast because we can try and control him, but we’re not going to contain him for the balance of 60 minutes. When you have a hurry to pressure ratio that high, that’s what that tells me. He’s not a hidden secret. Opponents are highly aware of him. He shows up on tape, makes an impact, and gets your attention for all the right reasons. And the other number that sticks out, and it speaks to what you see when you watch him on tape… that first burst…he’s a handful for tackles who aren’t quite agile enough from the waist down. He’s a handful. He’ll get over that hump in a hurry. But he had a win rate of 17.2%, which was 16th in the entire country. So as edge rushers go, he’s doing his job, and he’s getting the other team’s attention. So don’t get too caught up in the headline-grabbing stats — sacks or even TFLs — he’s impacting plays without sacking the quarterback, and sometimes he’s impacting plays without even hitting the quarterback.”

Holloman's 48 pressures would have led West Virginia by a wide margin in 2025. In fact, he would have doubled up the team leaders, Reid Carrico and Devin Grant, who each had 24.

He is going to be a difference-maker on this defense and with more talent around him, opposing team's aren't always going to just be able to key in on him. As Jed mentioned, he will have everyone's attention, but he should have more opportunities to bring the quarterback to the ground this fall.