CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Dax Hollifield has been here before. Waiting for a big play to begin.
"It's like a third down," he said. "Something's about to happen. You gotta be on your A-Game.”
For years, Hollifield had that feeling as a football star at Shelby High School, and then Virginia Tech, where the linebacker racked up the fourth-most tackles in Hokies history.
Now, he’s tackling a new sport.
Hollifield is now a NASCAR pit crew member at Hendrick Motorsports.
"You see the car coming down pit road, and you're ready to go and your heart's thumping," Hollifield said, "but then right before you go it's a blur."
Hollifield is a jackman on the development team, and starts and ends every pit stop.
“So rule number one, I gotta get the car and it's got to stay up," Hollifield said. "Then I index the right front tire. And then I check to see if the right, rear tire is done. And then I drop the jack and run around the other side and do the same thing. My priority every time is to keep the car up and make it safe for everybody around it.”
Hollifield caught on with the Jacksonville Jaguars for minicamp, but was let go.
“I thought I did really well," Hollifield said. "It's a tough business and the NFL didn't make it there. And about a month later, I got a call from Coach Flynn.”
That’s Keith Flynn, who runs the developmental pit crew team, and is a former football coach.
In fact, many of the pit crew members played college ball. The skills translate.
"We practice. we work out, we watch film and we travel on the weekend," Hollifield said. "So it's very similar to college football. I've had a blast so far.”
His pro athlete dreams shifting a bit, as he gets his new career in gear.
"I see myself in this career for a long time," Hollifield said. "I really enjoy coming to work every day.”