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Highly touted guard ascends depth chart
By Kevin Gorman
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Monday, October 2, 2006
There was no time for Joe Thomas to react. He saw John Simonitis lying on the field, watched the cart take away the fifth-year senior and immediately understood the consequences while taking his place in the lineup. In that instant, Pitt saw the end of one four-year starter's career and, perhaps, the beginning of another. When Simonitis was lost for the season to a fractured right ankle, the Panthers turned to their prized freshman for help.
"It just got a fire in me to get back at Toledo, to step it up and play for John," Thomas said. "It set in right when I got in, when I first heard that he broke his leg. I was like, 'Well, it's me from here on.' "
The 6-foot-5, 290-pound freshman from Cleveland now assumes the starting right guard job. Pitt coaches had projected Thomas as Simonitis' heir, just not this soon, and not under these circumstances.
"Joe's going to be a heck of a player," Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt said. "When you're starting a freshman, every week is going to be an adventure. He's going to be a good player for us. He's everything that we'd hoped." Simonitis' injury and Thomas' elevation to the starting lineup leaves the Panthers perilously thin on the offensive line. Thomas was considered the top backup at both guard positions, which forces sophomore Dom Williams into that role and leaves redshirt freshman Craig Bokor next in line.
"We just don't have the depth," Wannstedt said. "Guys are going to have to step up. You don't have to tell me it's all part of the game, but it's tough for me to deal with."
Not that the Panthers lack confidence in Thomas. He was ranked among the nation's top 20 offensive linemen at powerhouse Lakewood St. Edward - where he played alongside Ohio State starting left tackle Alex Boone - and fended off late recruiting overtures from the Buckeyes.
Pitt never hesitated in using Thomas to replace Simonitis when the latter was injured on the first series at Cincinnati, and Thomas responded with a key block on Tyler Palko's first-half touchdown pass to Oderick Turner. Thomas also saw action against Michigan State and The Citadel.
"He will be ready to play," Palko said. "Joe Thomas is a physical football player, someone who is going to be a great football player here. He's obviously been thrown into the fire. We got him some reps early in the season and he doesn't have a choice right now. He's got to be ready. Joe doesn't play like a freshman; I know that."
Thomas does feel like one at times, though. Although he had the playbook down in training camp, he's still adjusting to the college game, the size and speed of the defensive lineman and the intricacies of the pass game.
"My strengths are my run blocking and just how I come off the ball low," Thomas said. "I need to keep working on my pass protection. In the transition coming from high school to college, that's another thing that I have to get better at.
"The speed is the biggest thing, just getting used to everything. The linemen, all of them are way faster than high school. It's just getting used to that."
Highly touted guard ascends depth chart
By Kevin Gorman
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Monday, October 2, 2006
There was no time for Joe Thomas to react. He saw John Simonitis lying on the field, watched the cart take away the fifth-year senior and immediately understood the consequences while taking his place in the lineup. In that instant, Pitt saw the end of one four-year starter's career and, perhaps, the beginning of another. When Simonitis was lost for the season to a fractured right ankle, the Panthers turned to their prized freshman for help.
"It just got a fire in me to get back at Toledo, to step it up and play for John," Thomas said. "It set in right when I got in, when I first heard that he broke his leg. I was like, 'Well, it's me from here on.' "
The 6-foot-5, 290-pound freshman from Cleveland now assumes the starting right guard job. Pitt coaches had projected Thomas as Simonitis' heir, just not this soon, and not under these circumstances.
"Joe's going to be a heck of a player," Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt said. "When you're starting a freshman, every week is going to be an adventure. He's going to be a good player for us. He's everything that we'd hoped." Simonitis' injury and Thomas' elevation to the starting lineup leaves the Panthers perilously thin on the offensive line. Thomas was considered the top backup at both guard positions, which forces sophomore Dom Williams into that role and leaves redshirt freshman Craig Bokor next in line.
"We just don't have the depth," Wannstedt said. "Guys are going to have to step up. You don't have to tell me it's all part of the game, but it's tough for me to deal with."
Not that the Panthers lack confidence in Thomas. He was ranked among the nation's top 20 offensive linemen at powerhouse Lakewood St. Edward - where he played alongside Ohio State starting left tackle Alex Boone - and fended off late recruiting overtures from the Buckeyes.
Pitt never hesitated in using Thomas to replace Simonitis when the latter was injured on the first series at Cincinnati, and Thomas responded with a key block on Tyler Palko's first-half touchdown pass to Oderick Turner. Thomas also saw action against Michigan State and The Citadel.
"He will be ready to play," Palko said. "Joe Thomas is a physical football player, someone who is going to be a great football player here. He's obviously been thrown into the fire. We got him some reps early in the season and he doesn't have a choice right now. He's got to be ready. Joe doesn't play like a freshman; I know that."
Thomas does feel like one at times, though. Although he had the playbook down in training camp, he's still adjusting to the college game, the size and speed of the defensive lineman and the intricacies of the pass game.
"My strengths are my run blocking and just how I come off the ball low," Thomas said. "I need to keep working on my pass protection. In the transition coming from high school to college, that's another thing that I have to get better at.
"The speed is the biggest thing, just getting used to everything. The linemen, all of them are way faster than high school. It's just getting used to that."
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