CHARLOTTE, N.C. (theACC.com) – Virginia graduate student running back Mike Hollins was selected as the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year. Former Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten presented Hollins with the award at a ceremony on Thursday (Feb. 15) in Frisco, Texas.
 
The Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year, presented by Albertson’s/Tom Thumb, is awarded to the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) player who best demonstrates an outstanding record of leadership by exhibiting exceptional courage, integrity and sportsmanship.
 
Hollins was chosen as the recipient of the award among three finalists, which also included Texas Tech’s Tony Bradford, Jr., and Michigan’s Blake Corum.
 
Hollins has previously been recognized for several other awards this year. He was named the Atlantic Coast Conference’s recipient of the Brian Piccolo Award, given annually to the “most courageous” football player in the ACC. He was named the 2023 Comeback Player of the Year Award winner by the College Sports Communicators, the Associated Press and the Fiesta Bowl Organization, which he shared the honor with Michigan running back Blake Corum and College of Holy Cross linebacker Jacob Dobbs. He was also recognized by the Capital One-Orange Bowl with its Football Writers of America Association Courage Award for displaying courage on or off the field, including overcoming an injury or physical handicap and/or preventing a disaster or living through hardship.
 
On Nov. 13, 2022, Virginia players Devin Chandler, Lavel Davis Jr. and D’Sean Perry were shot and killed after returning to school from a class field trip. Hollins was shot when he returned to the bus to try and help his teammates and other students, suffering two gunshot wounds to the back. Hollins managed to flee to a nearby parking garage, but fearing he may not be found there when aid workers arrived, he returned to the bus area to await responders. Despite being involved in a horrendous shooting that also injured another UVA student, Hollins vowed to return to his team and play his final season at Virginia.
 
Hollins was admitted to the hospital in critical condition the same night after the two bullets narrowly missed his spine and created numerous injuries to his abdominal organs. He underwent two surgeries over the next few days to address those injuries and spent a week in the intensive care unit. His recovery required eight weeks of inactivity to allow for healing. He returned to limited physical activity in mid-January, with the goals of increasing his fitness and regaining core stability. Hollins was able to participate in 2023 spring football on a limited basis and returned to unrestricted activity during summer conditioning.
 
The Week 1 recipient of the Capital One Orange Bowl-FWAA Courage Award, Hollins carried the team flag onto the field in the season opener against Tennessee in Nashville. In the team’s home opener the next week, Hollins carried a “UVA Strong” flag on the field before rushing for two touchdowns in the game against James Madison. On the day before the game, Hollins and the Virginia program gathered on the Grounds for a ceremonial tree planting and plaque dedication near the site of the shooting to honor Chandler, Davis Jr. and Perry.
 
This season, he returned to play in 11 of 12 games for the Cavaliers. As part of a three-man rotation at running back, he recorded 80 carries for 274 yards and a team-high seven touchdowns on the ground. He also had 10 receptions for 34 yards and one touchdown catch. Throughout the season, Hollins served as UVA's primary third-down back for short yardage and also for pass protection packages.
 
For his career, he played in 42 games, rushing for 814 yards and 14 touchdowns on 203 carries and added 34 receptions for 231 yards and one score. For his career, Hollins had 814 rushing yards, 34 receptions, 241 receiving yards and 15 total touchdowns.
 
Hollins is the second consecutive ACC football student-athlete to receive the award, following Deslin Alexandre of Pitt, who won the award last year.
 
The Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year, presented by Albertsons and Tom Thumb, is the first college football honor to focus primarily on a player’s leadership, both on and off the field. The inaugural award was presented to UCF’s Shaquem Griffin in 2017. The second annual award was presented to Wisconsin’s D’Cota Dixon in 2018. Tennessee’s Trey Smith took home the honor in 2019, Sam Ehlinger of Texas won the award in 2020 and Josh Paschal of Kentucky in 2021.
 
A $10,000 contribution will be made in Hollins’s name to Virginia’s athletic scholarship fund. The contribution will be made by Jason Witten’s SCORE Foundation, the official charity of Jason and his wife Michelle. The SCORE Foundation, founded in 2007, has positively impacted tens of thousands of children and families in Texas and Tennessee over the last 17 years. The foundation operates its nationally-recognized SCOREkeepers program, which places trained male mentors on staff to work with children at family violence shelters, at nine shelters in the two states.