Hollis graduated from Croswell-Lexington High School in Michigan class of 1980. He earned a BA in communication from
Michigan State University in 1985 and an MBA from the
University of Colorado in 1992. Hollis was a basketball team manager under former head coach
Jud Heathcote throughout his undergraduate education at Michigan State. Between his BA and MBA, Hollis worked for the Western Athletic Conference under Commissioner
Joseph Kearney, who had previously been athletic director at Michigan State. Hollis was named athletic director on January 1, 2008. He had been a part of the Michigan State athletic department from 1995 until his retirement on January 31, 2018 in the wake of the
USA Gymnastics sex abuse scandal. Hollis was praised for his marketing abilities, helping to stage unusual athletic contests such as the
Cold War, an outdoor ice hockey match-up between rivals
Michigan State University and the
University of Michigan, as
Basketbowl, a 2003 match-up between
Michigan State University and the
University of Kentucky played at
Ford Field, and the 2011
Carrier Classic basketball game aboard the
USS Carl Vinson, between
Michigan State and
North Carolina. Hollis acknowledged the significance of the Rose Bowl in his acceptance speech in 2008 and the Spartans made it to the game in 2014, its first since 1988, while posting an 8-2 record against rival Michigan during his tenure. Hollis also served 5 years on the NCAA Men’s Basketball Committee and was Chairman in 2017. Along with Tom Izzo and Alan Haller, Hollis formed the search committee that hired Mark Dantonio in 2006. Hollis was also responsible for hiring former
Eastern Michigan University baseball head coach
Jake Boss. ==References==