Razorback Fans Will Now Cheer Linebacker They Once Booed Relentlessly

We look back at how Cincinnati transfer performed against Arkansas, what Jaheim Thomas brings to the table

Author:
Kent Smith
Publish date:
May 1, 2023 5:35 PM EDT

In this story:

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – When Cincinnati went into its spring game the Saturday after Good Friday, Bearcat fans knew they wouldn't be seeing their star linebacker, Jaheim Thomas, because he was sitting out to deal with an injury. What they didn't know is that by the time the Easter dinner rolls got cold, they wouldn't be seeing the local hometown hero ever again in a Cincinnati uniform.

On Monday, reportedly the highest rated defensive recruit to ever be a Bearcat announced he's headed to the SEC to play for Sam Pittman and his Arkansas Razorbacks. Thomas committed to the Bearcats during the height of the Luke Fickell era out of Princeton High School in Cincinnati as a 6-2^1/2, 215 pound 4-star linebacker. At the time he was the No. 22 outside linebacker in the country.

What the Razorbacks get is a seasoned 6-4, 245 pound product with whom they are very familiar. Pittman got a lot of time to watch Thomas on film while preparing for last season's season opener against a Cincinnati team that was coming off a College Football Playoff National semifinal appearance.

Thomas had seven tackles, including five solo tackles, against Arkansas. His most productive game of the season came against a Tulane team that took down Kansas State and USC last season on its way to a No. 9 finish nationally. He dropped Green Wave players 11 times.

The things that stand out about Thomas in live game action is his speed and active hands. Cincinnati moved him all over the place. He lined up on both sides of the field, played at linebacker depth and also as basically a standing defensive end. He's never out of a play, no matter how far away from him it goes. He also does a great job of keeping separation and doesn't seem to be bothered whether his blocker is a WWE-sized lineman or a running back. Thomas brings a swim move and a spin move to get himself free when engaged by blockers.

Notable moments against Arkansas:

• The Bearcats kept Thomas lined up outside the tight end for much of the game while switching his depth regularly, which is difficult to do against an Arkansas team that does most of its damage up the middle. This automatically took him out of the equation on a lot of plays he may have made had he been at least one gap closer inside.

• On the first offensive play of the day against Arkansas, Thomas was lined up outside the defensive end on the far left side of the field. When the ball was snapped, he stepped down to read his gap in case the action that was going away from him came back his way, then worked his way down the entire line before tackling running back Raheim Sanders on the far right sideline. He was fast enough to cover all that ground and catch a relatively fast running back. Unfortunately for Thomas, there was a holding penalty on Arkansas, so he didn't get credit for the solo tackle.

• When the Razorback offensive line engaged him, Thomas did a good job of keeping his arms extended to give him a chance to get off the block.

• Speaking of extending arms, on Jefferson's opening touchdown, Thomas had a chance to tackle him in the gap, but didn't reach out when he dove. He could have easily gotten his arms at least partially around Jefferson, which would have slowed him down. Instead, the powerful Arkansas quarterback put the Hogs up 7-0.

• On a direct snap to Jefferson, Thomas ran inside to the gap Jefferson usually uses on the quarterback draw. However, the read was Trey Knox coming across to provide the lead block. Had he made that read, the backside linebacker could have filled the gap Thomas ended up filling. Since Thomas didn't follow the lead blocker, he was out of position and the Bearcats had no one to seal off the outside, allowing Jefferson to run for a large gain.

• Thomas was able to fight off a blocker in traffic to be the main force in a tackle for loss against Sanders. The Arkansas running back didn't go down though, so as the referee blew the whistle, Thomas gave an extra shove, which made the Arkansas crowd angry. Razorback fans became incensed a second time after seeing the shove during the replay on the video board. They booed Thomas for quite a while.

• At one point Arkansas went faster than the Cincinnati coaches were prepared to work. The defensive call came in late, which allowed the Razorbacks to give the ball to Sanders on a quick hitter while the Bearcat linebackers had their heads turned away from the line of scrimmage looking for the signal. Thomas was able to recover and ran Sanders down from behind.

• Perhaps his most impressive play came in a moment where Thomas didn't even make a tackle. The snap was a little to the left of Jefferson who tried to get it under control to hand off to Sanders deep in Razorback territory. However, the ball dropped and was then kicked by Sanders. Meanwhile, Thomas was lined up head to head with Dalton Wagner. He feinted outside against Wagner, then swam past him right across Wagner's face. This took Wagner out of the play in regard to possibly recovering the ball, and allowed Thomas to create the contact in the backfield needed to disrupt Sanders as the lone Razorback who had a shot to recover. Thomas was one of three Cincinnati players fighting for the ball. It was an impressive move against a player who looked twice his size when the play began.

• Thomas was lined up especially wide on this play. It looked like Fickell might have wanted a rush to come off the edge. However, Thomas got too far upfield and Jefferson made him pay. The hole was so wide open where Thomas had originally been that when Jefferson hit open field on the edge with no one around him, he dropped the ball. Had he not had to slow down to scoop the ball up off the turf, he may have scored. Instead, Thomas got off his block and ran him down from behind.

• Once again we see an example of Thomas working the entire field. On this play he lined up on the left edge, got off a block, sprinted behind the line and caught Malik Hornsby on a direct snap from behind on the opposite side of the field.

• In the third quarter, Thomas got away from his blocker with Arkansas running to his side. He was able to loop around another potential blocker and bail out the inside linebacker by bringing down KJ Jefferson on his own, which is something that rarely happens. Yes, he got drug a yard or two, but he was trying to tackle a man who has carried half a defensive unit up the field at times.

• Late in the game on third and long with four minutes left, Fickell chose to not have Thomas on the field. Jefferson scrambled and ran right where Thomas would have been. Even though he might have been tackled from behind, not having Thomas in the game on that series may have been the difference because there was no one else with the speed and size to make the stop on that play.

• Thomas was put back in and fought his way from the edge on the right side to make a tackle as Jefferson cleared the line of scrimmage in the middle of the line, but it was too little too late. Thomas holding Jefferson to a couple of yards on a play out of his zone didn't have the impact it would have had on Jefferson’s big run earlier.

Final thoughts

Once Thomas got into rhythm, he was highly effective. What will be interesting is how Arkansas intends to use him. He appeared to be more comfortable out on the edge, working as basically a standing defensive end. He doesn't look like he will be comfortable putting his hand on the ground as a defensive end and doesn't look like he's been fully taught how to read from the traditional linebacker position well enough to do it without thinking.

The raw skills are definitely there, but it's going to take a lot of coaching to maximize his potential and a good knowledge of his strengths and weaknesses to put him in the position to succeed. If Thomas ever reaches a point where he can make the reads instinctually, he could develop into a defensive force. The good news is Arkansas has two years to make it happen.