The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1137844
46 ■ THE WOLFPACKER FOOTBALL PREVIEW 2019 BY MATT CARTER T revor Thomas moved his family to Raleigh in 2003, and one day his wife Shelly came home with a flyer about youth football. "We didn't know anyone," Thomas recalled. They always signed the children up for activities, be it for football, basketball or baseball, so Trevor took his 5-year-old and oldest son Thayer to the first practice. He can recall bringing a lawn chair, sit- ting and watching. Little did Thomas know he was about to have a front-row seat to the wave of talent that would overcome Wake County football — and eventually benefit NC State. Started At The Youth Level The North Raleigh Bulldogs have con- sistently been one of the larger youth foot- ball programs in the region, and Thomas speculates it could be among the biggest nationally. Thomas became a volunteer with the team not long after taking Thayer to that first practice. There were three coaches on the field that day, including Chris Love — father of future Stanford running back and Heisman Trophy finalist Bryce Love, who was just a few years older than Thomas' children. "We develop players," Thomas said. "That's the real essence of it. It's about development. We teach these guys about how to earn the position, how to play the technique and how to give great effort. "At the end of the day, if you do that you can have success." About 15 years later, Thomas has coached and seen some of the most notable talents to come through the state, his own children included. Thayer walked-on at NC State in football and after redshirting in 2017 busted out last fall with 34 receptions for 383 yards and three touchdowns. When the gridiron season was over, Thomas put on the baseball spikes and played on the diamond for a while. He was even drafted by the Boston Red Sox in June (33rd round). Middle brother Drake Thomas was a star linebacker recruit in the 2019 class and picked NC State over Clemson. Thomas also saw the Love brothers, Bryce and Chris (who played at East Caro- lina), the Marshall brothers (Georgia run- ning back Keith and Georgia Tech/James Madison running back Marcus) and the Lawrence brothers (Clemson first-round draft choice and defensive tackle Dexter and UNC running-back-turned-receiver Devon). Also coming through was future East Carolina quarterback Reid Herring and fu- ture Duke quarterback Gunnar Holmberg. And an athletic youth they played at run- ning back named Alim McNeill who would blossom into a 300-plus pound, now-soph- omore defensive tackle at NC State. "He had a great motor," Thomas remem- bered about McNeill. "He was probably one of my favorite players, actually. You could see the potential. He was tough. … He never shied away from contact." Another promising player on his team eventually gave up the sport to play basket- ball — Thomas Allen, who transferred into NC State from Nebraska this offseason. Thomas still gives Allen a hard time about giving up the sport. "He didn't think he was as good as he really was," Thomas said. "He was fast. He could take a toss sweep and go down the sideline." McNeill and Thayer Thomas were on the North Raleigh Bulldogs team that went to Disney World in Orlando, Fla., in 2011 and SURGING TALENT Wake County Is Becoming A Local Hotbed For NC State Football North Raleigh Bulldogs alum and former walk-on Thayer Thomas hauled in 34 catches for 383 yards and three scores during his redshirt freshman campaign at NC State. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN