PAHOKEE – Everyone needs to know one thing about our Co-Defensive Player of the Year.
Deejay Holmes is a Pahokee legend.
His numbers, his level of impact on the field, and his accolades back this fact up and then some.
Let us go right to the numbers first. In 12 games player, Holmes posted the following statistics:
•117 tackles (27.5 tackles for loss)
•41 quarterback hurries
•32.5 sacks – Pahokee Blue Devils program record;
•4 forced fumbles
•4 fumble recoveries
•3 pass breakups
•1 interception
Holmes also added a 43-yard touchdown reception on offense and two kickoff returns for 37 yards on special teams as a senior for Pahokee.
There is at least one game that truly stood out for Holmes. It came against Palm Beach Central in Week 4, where the 6-foot-3, 240-pound defensive end recorded 10 tackles (three tackles for loss), two sacks, and a 30-yard interception return for a touchdown that sealed Pahokee’s 34-14 road win.
Holmes recorded at least 10 tackles in seven games this past season. He also had at least two sacks in 11 of 12 games total.
If this is not enough to convince one about his Pahokee legend status, we can just list the prestigious accolades Holmes has achieved.
Here is the list:
•ESPN West Palm’s No. 2 overall player in the Top 63 for the 2023 class
•Lou Groza Player of the Year; highest individual honor in Palm Beach County high school football
•Palm Beach Post Small Schools Defensive Player of the Year
•Sun-Sentinel Small Schools Defensive Player of the Year (1R-1M-2M); two-time honoree
•MaxPreps Small Schools All-American First Team Defense – Defensive Line
•National co-leader in sacks; confirmed by MaxPreps
In addition to all of these amazing feats, Holmes has the bloodline that played a role into him having a legendary senior season and high school football career at Pahokee.
Holmes is the younger cousin of fellow Pahokee legend and NFL Hall of Fame candidate Anquan Boldin. He is the first Pahokee player to wear the No. 6 jersey since Boldin did so in 1998.
“That number was retired,” Holmes said. “I felt like I had something to prove by wearing a retired number. And that’s what I did. I proved it all.”
Holmes spoke some more about the level of impact that Boldin has had on him.
“Having him as a cousin is a big inspiration to me,” Holmes said. “Seeing how he overcame the toughest obstacles and also being from a small city, this told me that I need to do what he did and become one of the next greats out of Pahokee. And soon become a Pahokee legend as well.”
Pahokee head coach Emmanuel Hendrix went ahead and certified Holmes’s Pahokee legend status.
Hendrix can confidently claim this because of two things: he has been Holmes’s head coach these past two seasons and he played with Boldin when he was a Pahokee Blue Devils high school football player himself in the late 90’s.
“Deejay Holmes has had one of the most successful high school careers at Pahokee as anyone,” Hendrix said. “No one at Pahokee has ever got 30 sacks. We have had a lot of guys with 20+. No one has ever gotten past 30. He’s just been doing some amazing things.”
Hendrix had more to say about Holmes.
“He’s been a creature on defense,” Hendrix said. “He’s been a leader and a captain. He’s been a big part of keeping this team together. He just goes and gives his heart out. I can’t thank DeeJay Holmes enough. He has made my job as a head coach very easy.”
At this moment, Holmes is in the process of weighing his plethora of college football destination options. They include the likes of Ole Miss, Colorado, and UCF, to name just three.
Our No. 1-ranked defensive end and No. 1 overall player in Palm Beach County will either make his final decision later this month or on National Signing Day, which is Wednesday, Feb. 1.
“I can’t be happier for him because he’s put the work in,” Hendrix said of Holmes. “He’s a hell of a kid.”
PHOTO CREDIT: Future Draft Style
VIDEO CREDIT: Kevin Fielder
