Holohan Might Not Look Right, but He Sure Is Fitting Right In

Pete Holohan made a catch in practice the other day that might have said more about Pete Holohan than any biographical sketch.

Lumbering across the middle on a pass route, Holohan reached for a ball over his head and somehow plucked it out of the air. It stuck to his hands like fly to flypaper.

Holohan’s forward momentum, though, left him stiff-legged and stumbling toward the sideline. He regained his balance--barely--and headed upfield with all the ease of a moose turning a corner on linoleum.

“Pretty graceful, huh?” Holohan said on his way back to the huddle.

No, but this isn’t Willie Gault we’re talking about. You want ballet? Go see Swan Lake.

You want a catch in heavy traffic late in the game on third down and five? Go see Pete Holohan, who takes this aesthetic view of his game:

“You’re going to get the crap knocked out of you anyways,” he said. “You might as well catch it. You know people are in there. I just say I’m going in there anyway and not worry about it.”

Holohan is the guy you wanted next to you charging up Pork Chop Hill.

The Rams acquired him from the San Diego Chargers on draft day for a fourth-round draft pick. Like Dan Fouts, his retired mentor, it was time for Holohan to move on. He spent seven years with the Chargers and almost became an extension of Fouts’ right arm.

When Fouts found himself in trouble, he usually dumped the ball off to Holohan. One year, 1984, he did it 56 times for 734 yards and 3 touchdowns.

At 6-feet 4-inches and 232 pounds, Holohan might be the world’s largest safety valve, a role the Rams want him to play for quarterback Jim Everett.

“When it’s time to move the (first-down) stakes, that’s when I’ll see the ball,” Holohan said.

Holohan’s landing in Anaheim was no accident. The Rams--former Charger offensive coordinator Ernie Zampese in particular--had been after Holohan for some time before the trade was made.

Holohan is a natural in Zampese’s offense, the perfect dumpoff man over the middle. At 29, he has been in the system almost as long as Zampese.

The Rams would do cartwheels if Holohan caught 50 passes this year. Holohan might be able to do one.

“Pete’s a pro in every context,” Coach John Robinson said. “He understands the game and has great ability to catch the ball. He does not have great speed, but he understands running routes, getting open and catching the ball.”

And, of course, a pleasure to watch in a film room.

“No,” Robinson said. “he’s not Mr. Graceful.”

The Rams would settle for Mr. Successful.

It seems Holohan had started to blend in with the scenery in San Diego, where in recent years he was fighting off assorted injuries and tight ends Eric Sievers and Rod Berstine for playing time.

Holohan had only 20 receptions last season.

“But Ernie knew him,” Robinson said. “He had been hurt and didn’t have an unbelievable number of catches. It was more inside knowledge that made it easier to make an accurate evaluation.”

The big adjustment Holohan must make here is his run blocking, something he didn’t do as much of with the Chargers but a talent the Rams demand.

“I can run block,” he said. “If you want the prototype tight end who digs in and buries the defensive end, I might not be able to do that. But I can run block. There is emphasis on the run game here. They do it well. You just have to have it in your mind that your man doesn’t make the tackle.”

The Rams have no doubt that Holohan will play dirty. That’s dirty as in the dirt.

Holohan figures to the man on third and five. And he can’t wait.

“It’s nice,” he said of the offense, “because on every pattern everyone is alive. There’s a possibility the ball will come to you on every route. This pass offense has proven successful. Ernie’s done a great job.”

How good?

“This team has the capacity to win football games,” Holohan said. “I’m no young puppy. I’d like to play in the Big One. This team has as good a chance as any.”

Ram Notes

Coach John Robinson said Thursday that tailback Charles White (bruised ribs) won’t play in Saturday night’s game against the Houston Oilers. . . . Doug Ward, Rams’ assistant public relations director, resigned Wednesday night. He would only say the decision was “mutual.” . . . The Ron Brown-to-Tampa Bay trade rumor made the rounds again Thursday, though Robinson said nothing was transpiring. Brown’s agent, Jerome Stanley, had heard nothing late Thursday afternoon. “I can safely say I don’t know,” he said. . . . Tampa Bay Coach Ray Perkins told reporters Thursday that interest in Brown had died down this week and that the Buccaneers had turned their attention to Stephen Starring of the New England Patriots. But a Ram source said Thursday that the deal was still alive and something could be completed within the week. . . . Quarterback Jim Everett returned to practice Thursday after missing two days with a flu virus that has swept through the team this week. Everett may play into the third quarter Saturday night with Hugh Millen relieving. . . . Also bitten by the flu bug was tight end Pete Holohan, who started Thursday’s practice but couldn’t finish.