An area the Dallas Cowboys need to upgrade this off-season is offensive weapons, especially at wide receiver. Recently, I had the chance to talk with Wide Receiver Thayer Thomas from North Carolina State.
Thayer is an excellent all-around athlete. He left high school holding school records for receptions in football, the assist record in basketball, and the marks for hits, batting average, slugging percentage, and on-base percentage in baseball.
More importantly, in the classroom, Thayer finished 10th in his high school class and was drafted by the Boston Red Sox.
Instead of going that route, he chose the more challenging football path and is a few months from being rewarded for his hard work.
Let’s get down to my interview with Thayer Thomas for InsideTheStar.com.
Pat Schuster: What are your official height, weight, and forty?
Thayer Thomas: I am 6-0, 198, and play for my forty to be 4.4.
Pat: Your first name is Thayer, and your middle name is Rockne. That is a particular and unique combination. What is its significance?
Thayer: Thayer is my father’s middle name, so it is a family name, and Rockne, as you would expect, is named for Knute Rockne.
Pat: What other sports did you play in high school?
Thayer: I was the point guard on the basketball team and played baseball too.
Pat: During my research, I saw that education is critical to you (10th in high school class rank out of 410), and you are now working on your master’s degree.
What is the most challenging course you have ever taken?
Thayer: Business Law.
Pat: How did you settle on playing at North Carolina State?
Thayer: I was a late bloomer when I started high school. I was only five-foot-six. By the end, I did receive two offers to play baseball after high school from UNC Charlotte and Davidson.
I also started as the point guard on the high school basketball team and did travel for both basketball and baseball.
I loved playing football and had the benefit of a lot of former NFL players on the staff, with our head coach being former NFL player Dewayne Washington, our wide receivers coach Torry Holt, our RB coach Willie Parker, and our offensive coordinator being the late Charles Johnson.
Fast forward to the last game of my senior year, Coach [Dave] Doeren comes to see many of the guys on both teams. I had a great final game, so much so that Coach Doeren asked my coaches who I was and where I would play next year.
They told him I did not have a scholarship and was heading to play baseball unless an offer happened.
Coach Doeren met with me and explained that he did not have a scholarship left, but if I was interested, I could come as a priority walk-on.
After discussing it with my parents and visiting the schools that offered me baseball scholarships, I had to follow my heart and continue to play football.
Pat: Having done both, which is better, throwing a touchdown in a game or returning a punt for a touchdown?
Thayer: No question that returning a punt for a touchdown is a great feeling.
Pat: How big of an adjustment did the offense experience when Devin Leary went down?
Thayer: It was challenging. I mean, man, Devin was my guy. We had the chemistry that worked. I saw a 1,000-yard season on the horizon this year.
It was tough, but it made me realize how fast things change.
Pat: If an NFL team asked for the best game film from the 61 college games you played, what game should they watch?
Thayer: 2020 Syracuse (9 receptions, 102 yards, 3 touchdowns).
Pat: What was the moment like being drafted in the 2019 MLB Draft by the Boston Red Sox?
Thayer: It was pretty crazy. I had heard that if I was selected, it would be a late-round pick, and I was at football conditioning, so I had my calls sent to my mom’s phone. It was wild to come home to my family, all excited.
Pat: If you could have dinner with three people, living or dead, who would they be?
Thayer: Drake (the rapper), Tom Brady, and Kobe Bryant.
Pat: Give us a name to know on next year’s football team.
Thayer: Payton Wilson, Linebacker.
Pat: You attended the Hula Bowl and East-West Shrine game. How were those experiences?
Thayer Thomas is one of this year's draft sleepers. He's also spent time on the NC State baseball team. @thayerthomas1 @PackFootball @DraftDiamonds are found at the #HulaBowl pic.twitter.com/Y3sXrSOCqh
— Hula Bowl (@Hula_Bowl) November 6, 2022
Thayer: I enjoyed them a lot. Practice for the coaches and meeting team personnel was a great learning experience. I met with a lot of teams.
Pat: What is your biggest pet peeve?
Thayer: It is when I am out of following my routine regarding a particular task or activity.
Pat: Describe yourself in a few words.
Thayer: Hardworking, motivated, and driven.
For more information, check out Thayer Thomas’ website. You can also follow Thayer on Twitter as he prepares for the NFL — @thayerthomas. Check out Thayer showing off his route-running ability on Tic Toc.
