Holloman ruled ineligible

~ The school would not disclose why the junior was declared ineligible.

Junior tailback Timmy Holloman appeared poised to become just the fifth Southeast Missouri State football player to rush for 1,000 yards in a season.

But those plans have been put on hold because Holloman has been ruled ineligible under NCAA guidelines and will be out indefinitely.

The university released a three-paragraph statement Tuesday evening that said Holloman "has been found in violation of NCAA eligibility rules and therefore has been declared ineligible effective immediately."

The release said Holloman will be out indefinitely, according to athletic director Don Kaverman, and a source said Holloman will likely not play any more this season.

Southeast Missouri State junior running back Timmy Holloman carried the ball against Indiana State earlier this season at Houck Stadium. Holloman, the second leading rusher in the OVC, was ruled ineligible Tuesday. (Aaron Eisenhauer)

"The university will have no further official comment on this issue since the details are considered part of the student-athlete's protected educational record," the release said.

Reached later via telephone, Kaverman said that Holloman will be allowed to continue practicing while ineligible and that Southeast's two wins will not be affected.

The Redhawks (2-3, 0-2 Ohio Valley Conference) are preparing for Saturday's game at first-place Eastern Kentucky (4-2, 3-0), ranked 23rd nationally in Division I-AA.

Holloman ranks second in the OVC and eighth nationally in rushing with an average of 131 yards per game. He has 655 yards on 114 carries, a 5.7-yard average.

Holloman, who has scored six of Southeast's nine touchdowns, was riding a streak of four consecutive 100-yard rushing performances. No one at Southeast has had as many as three straight 100-yard games since 1988.

A native of Orlando, Fla., Holloman led Southeast in rushing during his first two seasons with a combined 1,341 yards. He ranks fourth on the school's career rushing list with 1,996 yards.

"We're going to miss him," Southeast coach Tony Samuel said from his office at the Southeast football complex Tuesday evening. "But we're going to move on. We've got to continue to play."

Samuel said it has not yet been determined who would start in place of Holloman, although several backs figure to share the load of trying to replace his production.

Southeast's second-leading rusher among running backs is true freshman Alfred Reese, who has 91 yards on 25 carries (3.6 average).

Also seeing action so far at tailback have been redshirt freshman Sterling Hardin (36 yards on eight carries) and senior Elton Peterson (23 yards on five carries).

Probably also figuring into the mix is true freshman Mike Jones, who has been limited by injuries and has carried just once (for a two-yard loss), but has consistently earned praise from Samuel.

The Redhawks' second-leading rusher overall is quarterback Victor Anderson, who has 262 yards on 54 attempts (4.9 average).