Justin Holmes still remembers his first game on the Northwestern Lehigh varsity football team.

His brother Derek was a senior, and kicker Connor de Wit hit an extra point in overtime to beat Notre Dame Green Pond 42-41.

Holmes didn’t play in the game, but instead, watched his older brother from the sidelines and remembers running onto the field when the final kick cleared the uprights and the Tigers officially pulled off the upset over the Crusaders.

“My first game with the team, I got to storm the field with these guys,” said Holmes pointing to fellow seniors who assembled in the Northwestern Lehigh auditorium Wednesday to watch his Letter of Intent signing. “Looking back on that game and then my last game, I know it was a loss in the district finals, but having the whole community up in the stands and cheering, the energy was awesome.”

It is typical for Justin Holmes, who will attend Kent State University and play football with the Golden Flashes, that when he looks back, he doesn’t remember his achievements, or one of the many games that he won for the team. Instead, he remembers other players and the support that he and his teammates received from the community.

His selflessness was noted by athletic director Jason Zimmerman, who introduced Holmes and his family on stage for the signing. Zimmerman, addressing Holmes directly, stated: “You never made it about you. It was always what was in the best interest of the team. It was about securing that Tigers victory before you satisfied any stat line or statistic, or even about all the career victories that you put together. What I will remember most is how you acted when you thought nobody was looking.”

Holmes opened his career at Northwestern Lehigh as a wide receiver pulling in passes from Devin Bollinger, who served as the team’s quarterback. In his freshman season, Holmes caught just one pass, but it was a 54-yard TD catch.

After Bollinger graduated and went off to the University of Delaware, Holmes took over his longtime friend’s role with the team, and was soon on his way to becoming one of the best quarterbacks in the Lehigh Valley.

He finished his high school career by nearly becoming the first player to amass 1,000 yards rushing, passing, and receiving, finishing with just under 2,700 yards passing, over 2,500 yards rushing and 791 yards in receiving with a combined 81 touchdowns.

At Kent State, Holmes will officially be grouped with the tight ends, but the future does not hold a typical tight end role. Instead, Holmes will be somewhat of a slot receiver, and get a lot of work special teams. Kent State coaches were impressed that Holmes was able to star in not just football, but also basketball and baseball and love his athleticism.

With multiple offers, what was it about Kent State that made them stand out?

“It was my first offer when I got it last February. I had one phone call with them and in the next one, they let me know that I got the offer, so that was awesome,” said Holmes. “Also, their coaching staff is one of the youngest in the NCAA, and they know what being young is all about, and they’re fun to talk to and easy to talk to. When I visited out there, we were just watching football and hanging out like buddies.”

If the football program was the appetizer, the academic opportunity was the steak dinner.

Wanting to major in aerospace engineering, Holmes found Kent State to be a perfect opportunity to not just play football, but engage in a highly-touted academic program. As luck would have it, Holmes spoke with outgoing Kent State quarterback Dustin Crum, who also majored in aerospace engineering and was able to pass along some tips.

“They have a great aeronautical school and have their own airport, so I will get a lot of hands-on experience, and that’s what I wanted,” said Holmes of the academic opportunities that await him.

For Josh Snyder, Holmes’ coach at Northwestern Lehigh, Kent State was not a surprise. Snyder was the first person that Holmes called after receiving the official offer, and he could sense that his quarterback was enamored with the program.

“The recruiting game is something special, especially if you’re a high-level recruit like Justin,” said Snyder. “We had multiple conversations about multiple schools, but I could tell that Kent State was a little bit different because of how big -time of a program it is. They are an up-and-coming program with a young coaching staff, and I had an inkling that he was going to commit there.”

Holmes will forgo his senior seasons in basketball and baseball to continue rehabbing the thumb that he injured in the district finals, and begin a weightlifting and training regimen to help prepare him for college football.