TOLEDO, OH (WTOL) - We last checked in with Nate Holley before the NFL draft, but unlike he had hoped, his name wasn't called.
Still, Holley is training and waiting for the call.
"My life's been interesting," Holley said. "Every week it's like I'm waiting on a call, I'm waiting on a door, an opportunity to open up."
Even through the frustrations of not getting that call, Holley's dream of playing in the NFL hasn't faltered.
"That's what I plan on doing with my life and that's, you know, my only plan. That is plan A, that is plan B, that is plan C," he said. "Everybody keeps asking me, you know, well what else could you, that's what I'm going to do, you know, and I'm determined that's what I'm going to do."
For Holley, the hold up has nothing to do with the field. Instead, it's the lingering effects of charges brought against him almost a year ago. Charges he was found "not guilty" for, but in a way he's serving a sentence for.
"For a lot of teams, unfortunately, it's not my game, it's not the aspect of what I can do on the field," Holley said. "A lot of it's the off-the-field stuff that I went through. The unfortunate situation that I was put in and, you know, it is unfortunate, and it is what it is, but it's not a testimony of who I am."
His former coaches like, Whitmer Head Coach Ken Winters are supporting him in getting picked up.
"He's, I would say, pretty much a legend around here and kids look up to him," Winters said. "Even though they were pretty small when he played, they know who he is, and he spoke to our team, uh, gave great words of wisdom to them, and you can tell, you know, when he's around, they kind of flock to him, and it's been a really good experience for us."
So until an NFL team can see the man, many in the Whitmer community describe, he'll remain ready.
"So in my head I keep preparing and I keep training and I'm staying ready for when that call comes," Holley said.
