WHERE ARE THEY NOW? BRETT HOLLAND '09

Brett Holland was a two-time conference championship winning outfielder with the Hawks, helping the team to NCAA Regional appearances in 2007 and 2009. He was a 2008 All-State Second Team selection, and is seventh all time in school history in stolen bases with 47. He collected 70 hits as a senior in 2009, hitting .347.

What have you been involved in since graduating from Monmouth (job, career, etc.)?

After Monmouth, I attended Thomas Jefferson University for my graduate work, which was physical therapy. Currently, I am working as a sports medicine physical therapist and finishing a Doctorate in Philosophy (PhD), where I am studying how to accelerate recovery and prevent long term symptoms after a concussion. I think transitioning from playing sports to sports medicine was a fairly natural progression.

What is your fondest playing memory at Monmouth (game, moment, championship, etc.)?
It's a tough call. We won conference championships in both '07 and '09, I think I am biased to the '09 championship since I was a senior. It's a blessing to be able to end your college career with a conference championship. The '07 team had an amazing year end to end. The '09 team was an enigma, we had a ton of confidence and loved to have fun on the field, but we had underperformed during the regular season. We caught fire at the right time.

If you could give advice to a current Monmouth player, what would it be?
Playing college sports gives you memories that last a lifetime but at the same time education is exponentially more important. Your career depends on it, and for most that is 30 to 40 years.

How did your time at Monmouth prepare you for life after graduation?
Monmouth made graduate school easy, relatively speaking.  The time commitment to sports, going to labs, organic chemistry, etc. teaches an individual to be efficient, set goals, and prioritize their life.

Between your former teammates and coaches, who has had the most impact on your life?
My former teammates definitely, they were my entire wedding party with the exception of my brothers. Coach Dean would be a close second.
 
Have you been able to stay in touch and follow the MU Baseball program? If so, how?
After baseball, we all gravitated towards golf and now we get together a few times a month to catch up.
 
What has changed the most with the baseball program and the Monmouth Athletics department as a whole since your time as a student-athlete?
The professionalism of the program continues to improve.  Each year the team, facilities, sporting gear, and coaching gets better.  Each graduating class leaves with a little better experience than the last.  When I first arrived at MU, we built the batting cage out in in center and we had a floating locker room.  Now, the field looks great with the stands and hopefully soon the turf and the kids have access to better facilities including the weight and locker rooms.   The commitment from the University has been noticeable.