Holderman taking aggressive game to Shippensburg
BUTLER TWP — When it comes to football, there is only one word on Terrell Holderman’s mind.
Attack.
Butler’s senior defensive end led the Golden Tornado with 48 tackles and five quarterback sacks in 2023. A starter on the offensive line as well, he leaves no mystery as to his preferred position on the gridiron.
“Get to the quarterback and lay hits on him,” Holderman said. “That’s what I love to do.”
With eight sacks in his two years as a starter for Butler, he will have opportunities to pile up more sacks over the next few years. The 6-foot-3, 220-pound Holderman recently signed a letter of intent to continue his academic and football career at Shippensburg University.
He also considered Clarion before deciding to join the Red Raiders.
“When I visited, I felt like I belonged there,” Holderman said.
That’s no surprise. Shippensburg leads the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference with 323 quarterback sacks over the past 11 seasons.
“Terrell is going to the perfect defensive system for him,” Butler coach Eric Christy said. “He is a natural edge rusher. That’s where he does his best work. That’s where he shines.”
Mark Maciejewski is 80-44 in 13 years as head coach at Shippensburg. He is second on the program’s all-time list in victories. The Red Raiders were 3-8 last season, 2-5 in the PSAC East. The team’s last winning season was in 2021, when Shipp finished 9-2 overall, 5-2 in conference play.
Holderman is part of a 48-player recruiting class — largest in Maciejewski’s tenure there — and hopes to contribute right away.
“My immediate goal is to play as a freshman,” he said. “I’m going to pound the weight room, get bigger, stronger, faster ... I know I have work to do to compete at the next level.”
Holderman was first-team all-conference his senior season with the Tornado and was named Butler’s team MVP. He’s been playing football since eighth grade.
“Terrell is a man of few words,” Christy said. “But he’s a leader regardless. He is tenacious on the field and gets the other guys to follow his lead. He keeps everybody in line.
“To start playing football relatively late and being able to attain a Division II scholarship in a good league is a testament to how hard he’s worked and how much he’s put into this. I’m proud of him and I’m excited for him.”
Holderman’s just happy the Red Raiders are looking at him as a defensive end.
“That’s where I want to be,” he said.
