In-State Edge Rusher Trent Thomas Signs With Baylor Bears
After committing to Baylor in June, three-star edge rusher Trent Thomas signed with the Bears on National Signing Day Wednesday.
Thomas, a 6-foot-5, 235-pound prospect out of Fort Bend Marshall (TX), chose Baylor over offers from Houston, Colorado and Boston College, among others. He primarily played defensive end in high school, but could play outside linebacker in the right scheme.
Thomas played just eight games as a senior before an injury ended his season prematurely. Still, he managed to rack up 6 1/2 tackles for loss and 5 1/2 sacks.
When Thomas played, Fort Bend Marshall allowed just six points per game. In the six games after his injury, that figure more than doubled to 12.5, including a season-ending loss to eventual state runner-up Port Neches-Groves.
Thomas also competed at the ESPN 300 Elite Underclassmen Camp in April.
Baylor’s defensive front under Dave Aranda has long been a strength, but this year’s team struggled to consistently disrupt opposing quarterbacks: the Bears finished the regular season with just 24 sacks, second-to-last in the Big 12 and 77th nationally. Contributions from incoming freshmen such as Thomas, linebacker Corey Kelly (League City Clear Falls, TX) and defensive lineman DK Kalu (Missouri City Ridge Point, TX) could go a long way towards boosting those numbers.
Before the signing window opened on Wednesday, Baylor’s recruiting class was ranked No. 25 in the 247 Sports Composite rankings. That’s third-best among new Big 12 teams, behind only TCU (No. 18) and Texas Tech (No. 24).