After the first half of Pittsburg State’s football season opener last Saturday at Central Oklahoma, the Gorillas may have been pretty hard on themselves.
And Pitt State junior Jon Thomas was no exception.
After a fumbled kick off return and an exchange between he and quarterback Zac Dickey that resulted in a fumble, Thomas came back and rattled off an 84-yard punt return that gave the Gorillas their first points of the game (and season) and a 28-yard third-quarter touchdown catch that helped the squad battle back from a 14-7 halftime deficit.
“I had to redeem myself for the fumble,” Thomas said. “I didn’t think I was going to make it, but (Alex) Kuhlman and the guys really got out there and blocked.”
And, after the ball was kicked, Thomas had a pretty good idea what he was going to do with it.
“I knew I needed to make a play, but I did think, for a second, about a fair catch,” Thomas said.
Even after his two fumbles, Pitt State head coach Tim Beck said that the thought never crossed the minds of the coaching staff to pull Thomas from his starting duties.
“The first one (turnover), he just lost sight of the ball and the other one was really the exchange,” Beck said.
It was the punt return — 2 yards shy of the school record — that not just set things right for Thomas, but also sparked the Gorillas.
“He really did spark us with that return,” Beck said.
For Thomas, a former walk-on who stands 5-foot-6 and weighs just 154 pounds, his size doesn’t seem to bother him all that much.
“I see myself as one of the leaders on this team,” Thomas said. “I try to know all of the positions so I can help.”
As a redshirt freshman in 2008, he lined up as a defensive end and blocked a punt (and recovered the ball) against MIAA rival Truman.
That has evolved into what he is now — starting wide receiver as well as kick off and punt returner. Oh, by the way, he also is the holder for PATs and field goal attempts.
And Thomas said that it is his smaller stature that has put him in his current position ... which he said is not bad at all.
“It (size) always has been a motivator because you are always told what you can’t do,” Thomas said.
Matthew Clark can be reached at matthew.clark@morningsun.net or at 620-231-2600, Ext. 140
