Coast to Coast
August 25, 2003 10:30 AM | General
August 25, 2003
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Jubal Thomas traveled more than 3,000 miles to play big-time college football.
Now after almost a month’s worth of preseason practices it looks like he made the right decision. The Los Angeles resident has cracked the team’s top eight wide receiver rotation and will back up senior Travis Garvin in the slot.
Thomas, a 6-foot-1, 180-pounder, says West Virginia’s wide open depth chart was one of the main reasons he chose to switch coasts in the first place.
“LSU recruited three or four other All-American receivers and with Cal, I had some transcript problems there, so West Virginia just fit right,” he said.
Thomas caught his friends and family back home off guard when he told them that he was going all the way to West Virginia to play college football.
“I got a big reaction but everybody is proud of me and I want to make everyone proud of me,” he said.
The Mountaineers were actually late entrants in the recruiting sweepstakes for Thomas, a second-team all-conference receiver at Los Angeles Harbor Community College.
“West Virginia was the last school that got on me,” he said. “They got a hold of my tape and the next day Coach (Steve) Bird was on the phone and he was like, ‘I’m coming down there, don’t do anything yet.’ Once I tripped up here I just felt at home so here I am.”
Thomas has noticed a big difference between junior college and Division I-A football. He caught 33 passes for 746 yards and nine touchdowns his sophomore season after a high school career in which he caught 56 passes for more than 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns as a senior at Culver City High.
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| Junior Jubal Thomas has earned a spot in West Virginia's eight-man wide receiver rotation. (All-Pro Photography/Dale Sparks) |
“In junior college the offense was basically upon me,” said Thomas, who grew up in Houston before moving to California to finish high school. “I was a big fish in a small pond but now I’m a little fish in a big pond. Basically it’s more of a team concept now -- run the right depths to open up the next man -- everything is controlled here.”
Although Jubal has experience playing in four-wide receiver sets, he says the precision of Rodriguez’ no-huddle spread system is much different than what he’s used to.
“We ran more deep routes in junior college,” he said.
Thomas also spent most of his junior college career playing on the outside. Here at West Virginia he is being asked to play in the slot where he will be running reverses and doing more blocking. Thomas says he is still making the adjustment of moving to inside receiver.
“I definitely need to get bigger, stronger and faster,” he admitted. “There’s also a learning curve that I need to set for myself. Study the playbook, get into the weight room and just try and listen more to the coaches.
“They’re throwing it at me but it’s up to me to get it done. It’s not too much, I can handle it, but it’s a lot of stuff.”
Perhaps the biggest adjustment for Thomas has been the overall speed of the game.
“The defenses and the offenses are ten times faster here than in junior college,” he said. “As soon as you turn around the ball is zooming by your head. On catches I used to score on in juco, I’m getting like five-yard gains here.”
Thomas, who possesses sprinters speed, isn’t the biggest receiver on the roster either. Yet he’s managed to show a willingness to catch passes in traffic and take tough hits in practice.
“He’s wiry,” said West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez. “Sometimes he has to jump around in the shower to get wet. Sometimes wiry guys are active.
“I like what he can bring to us,” Rodriguez added. “I’m not sure what his forty speed is, but he’s one of the top five fastest on the team.”
For his part, Thomas says he’s pleased he made it through fall camp and has earned a spot on the depth chart.
“I feel like a big weight has been lifted off me. I had doubts coming in but I got through it and everything is alright now,” he said.
With game week now here, Thomas is also excited about playing before a big crowd at Mountaineer Field when West Virginia plays host to nationally ranked Wisconsin on ESPN.
“I heard it gets live here and I just can’t wait for it all to get started,” he said. “It will be a first-time experience for me but I think I’m ready for it.”
Briefly ...
