Quite simply Terrence Holt was the greatest game changer in Austin Peay football history.
In fact, the first time Holt touched the ball as a collegian, he returned a kickoff 75 yards for a touchdown against Bethel—he would have another 50-yard return later in the game. For his career Holt returned six kicks—four kickoffs and two punts—for touchdowns.
Hard to believe he had only one FCS/FBS scholarship offer coming out of Maplewood High School. At a mere 5-7, 160 pounds, Holt found only Austin Peay willing to take a chance and all he did was not only rewrite APSU history as far as kick returns but the OVC’s as well. He was named to the OVC All-Newcomer team as a freshman and then earned All-OVC as kick return specialist for the next three seasons.
Holt left APSU with the top four single-season kickoff yardage return marks and in doing so became the first player in NCAA/FCS history to tally four 1,000-yard kickoff returns seasons. In addition to setting the OVC record for career and single-season returns yards, he also attained the mark for single-game return yards with 250 on seven kickoff returns at North Dakota State in 2008. To put it in perspective, while Holt had 250 kickoff return yards, the Govs offense managed just 91 yards all game that night.
As a junior in 2009 Holt averaged 215.7 all-purpose yards per game, which was the best in all of FCS. He was the OVC touchdown leader that year scoring 15 total touchdowns. Remarkably, he finished the season with 200 or more all-purpose yards in every single game.
The College Sporting News named the Nashville native as its first-team all-purpose back on the 2009 FCS Fabulous Fifty All-American Team. He also was named second-team FCS All-America all-purpose back by The Sports Network.
As a senior, he again was named to the College Sporting News Sweet 63 Football Championship Subdivision All-America team as a return specialist. He also was named an Elite Kick Return Specialist by the College Football Performance Awards.
Holt averaged nearly 11 per punt return for his career and 24.5 yards per kickoff return as teams each season found more and more ways to totally kick away from him or offer him little chance for return. Entering 2017, he still was the NCAA career record holder for kickoff return yards (4,683); career single-game average kickoff return yards (106.4); most total [punt and kickoff] kick returns (241); most total kick return yards (5,230); most single-game kick-return yards average (118.9).
He was the 2009 NCAA Annual Champion in all-purpose yardage (2,373), 22nd most in FCS history. His 7,512 career all-purpose yards ranks seventh all-time in FCS history while his 170.7 all-purpose yards per game ranks 14th all time.
But those numbers also demonstrate Holt was more than just a kick return specialist. In fact, because of his smallish size, Austin Peay played Holt at wide receiver as a freshman. Knowing how explosive he was with the ball was in his hands, the Govs coaching staff shifted him back to his familiar running back spot as a sophomore. Each offseason Holt dedicated himself in the weight room to better handle the position’s rigors—he played his senior season at almost 190 pounds.
As a result, Holt helped APSU develop one of the OVC's most feared running games over his last two seasons. He was named All-OVC running back in 2009, joining teammate and backfield mate Ryan White as first-team choices—Holt earned second team as a senior. He finished with more than 1900 career rushing yards (793 yards in both his junior and senior seasons), averaging 5.4 yards per attempt, and 23 TDs, including 21 his last two seasons. As a result, he tallied 29 career touchdowns, combining his rushing and returning scores.
Holt was named Austin Peay’s 2007-08 Legends Award recipient as the most valuable senior athlete. It was a culmination of a spectacular and unmatched career.
