Ryan Hollingshead spent his college years at UCLA, earning 2012 Pac-12 Player of the Year and All-Pac-12 honors on three occasions in his time there. After his collegiate success, The fullback was projected to be a top pick in the 2013 MLS SuperDraft. Instead, he decided he would not be playing in the upcoming MLS season, due to the fact that he had previously promised his brother to help him build a church in Sacramento. FC Dallas still took a chance, drafting him with the 20th overall pick, which was at the beginning of the second round back then. Hollingshead also did charity work in Haiti during this off year. Come 2014, he accepted Dallas' offer and at last, signed with the team. Hollingshead made his debut on May 31st, playing 18 minutes in a 2-1 loss to Colorado. It took him some time to work back from a full year away from the sport, plus he still had to prove himself at the professional level. The 2014 season did not see much of anything for Hollingshead, just a few minutes here and there.
In 2015, Hollingshead abruptly sprung into the starting role for Dallas. On March 21st, he registered his first MLS goal at Philadelphia. He used a slight hesitation at the top of the box, before taking a positive touch and hitting a low shot into the bottom corner. Hollingshead would start the majority of the games for the rest of the way. FC Dallas won the 2015 regular season Western Conference with ease, netting 60 points. They tied the Red Bulls for the Supporters Shield, but fell short on the tiebreaker. The first-seed curse got to Dallas, as Portland defeated them on aggregate in the two leg draw of the Western Conference Final. Despite the loss, Hollingshead scored a playoff goal in the series to try to save his team.
In 2016, FC Dallas refused to give up their place at the top. The team finished with a nearly identical record, garnering exactly 60 points for a second straight year. The race for the Supporters Shield held the same teams, but this time the Red Bulls scored 57 points, giving FC Dallas the Shield that had eluded them a year prior. Hollinsghead scored two goals during the regular season, one against Portland, the other against Houston In September, he helped anchor the back line of the 2016 US Open Cup champion FC Dallas. The top seed curse hit Dallas even harder this time around, going out in their first series against Seattle.
The year 2017 was probably the most emotional of Ryan Hollingshead's life and career. On January 6th, 2017, Hollingshead stopped to help a stranded car, which is just a testament to his incredible character. While helping, another car slid out of control on the icy road, striking Hollingshead. He was launched 30 feet into the air, breaking three vertebrae upon impact. He thought he was paralyzed when it happened, he could not move. Not only did he survive the event, but he thrived. He was named the 2017 MLS WORKS Humanitarian of the Year.
By May, Hollingshead was already back in the team. In the summer, he snatched his starting job back. He still managed to log 820 minutes and 3 assists despite everything that had happened. In 2018, it was a much smaller role for Hollingshead. He played even less minutes than the year prior. In the next season, he played the most minutes of his career, by quite a bit.
In 2019, Hollingshead made what one could call a full return to Major League Soccer. Early on in the season, he beat Colorado with a quick fire rebound. His second goal of the year was scored against his future club, LAFC, at the back post. Hollingshead continued his goal scoring prowess, adding another in June against Vancouver. In August, he scored every other match for almost the entire month. He finished the season with a career-high 6 goals from his defensive position. FC Dallas qualified for the playoffs as the very last seed in the West. Dallas lost in the most heartbreaking 4-3 extra time manner against Seattle in the first round.
In 2020, Ryan Hollingshead set his career-high of 5 assists despite the shortened season. He also scored 4 goals in another productive attacking season from fullback. Dallas was the sixth seed in the playoffs in 2020, but Seattle was poised to defeat them as the heavy favorite for a second consecutive year, and did. In 2021, Hollingshead saw a dip in his numbers despite playing one of the highest minutes total of his career. This likely had to do with the fact that FCD struggled greatly, finishing an entire 15 points out of the playoffs. After eight emotional seasons in Frisco, Texas, it was finally time for Hollingshead to move on.
On February 10th 2022, LAFC acquired Ryan Hollingshead in exchange for Marco Farfan, in a like-for-like fullback trade. In his debut, he only played four minutes in a February matchup with Colorado. In his second start in the black and gold, LAFC's new addition wreaked havoc on Vancouver. A Carlos Vela corner kick connected with Hollingshead's head, it's in his name after all. In the 70th minute, Hollingshead stepped up and ripped a first-time volley into the bottom right corner to complete the brace. He scored a beautiful goal against San Jose, taking a first touch of an attacker before scoring with a weak footed shot. In his first season with the club, he matched his season high in goal scoring. LAFC won the Western Conference in the regular season by a landslide, capturing the Supporters Shield in the process. Hollingshead was an integral piece of the team that went onto win MLS Cup. He played every single playoff minute en route to the final. Ryan Hollingshead got to hoist MLS Cup, very deservedly so.
In the current season of 2023, Hollingshead has remained an important piece for LAFC's defense. He reached the 2,000 minute mark for the fifth time in his career tonight/last night against Philadelphia. He has scored 4 goals and assisted 1 thus far. In April's edition of El Trafico, Hollingshead provided the game-winning goal on a corner kick header. In September's edition of El Trafico, he scored a left footed shot from outside of the box. It's safe to say that he has settled into the rivalry nicely. That goal, just a week ago from the time of writing, was his most recent score. As it stands, LAFC sit in a precarious second position, plenty of work is left to be done in the final four games to secure playoff position. His team will look to defend their title in December's MLS Cup 2023. Ryan Hollingshead has had one of craziest careers, and lives, in Major League Soccer in the last decade. His consistency and big game contributions see him ranked at #78 on the list.
YEAR | CLUB | MINUTES | GOALS | ASSISTS | CS |
2023 | LAFC | 2,057* | 4* | 1* | 6* |
2022 | LAFC | 1,928 | 6 | 1 | 3 |
2021 | DAL | 2,671 | 3 | 1 | 4 |
2020 | DAL | 1,731 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
2019 | DAL | 2,961 | 6 | 1 | 8 |
2018 | DAL | 766 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
2017 | DAL | 820 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
2016 | DAL | 2,024 | 2 | 0 | 6 |
2015 | DAL | 2,171 | 2 | 0 | 5 |
2014 | DAL | 289 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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