Notre Dame Signs WR Jayden Thomas
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish have signed wide receiver Jayden Thomas.
JAYDEN THOMAS PROFILE
Hometown: Atlanta, Ga.
High School: Pace Academy
Height: 6-1
Weight: 205
2020 Stats: 28 catches, 432 yards, 15.4 YPC, 5 TD (7 games)
2019 Stats: 21 catches, 238 yards, 11.3 YPC, 1 TD (5 games)
2018 Stats: 42 catches, 696 yards, 16.6 YPC, 5 TD (11 games)
IB Grade: 4.0 (Top 300 caliber player)
Upside Grade: 4.0
Offers: Notre Dame, Alabama, Ohio State, Georgia, Florida, LSU, Penn State, Michigan, Florida State, Miami, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia Tech, Arkansas, Virginia, Missouri, Nebraska, South Carolina, Purdue, Mississippi State, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Vanderbilt
Recruited By: DelVaughn Alexander, Tommy Rees
ESPN: 4-star - No. 218 overall
Rivals: 4-star
247Sports: 3-star
Composite: 4-star - No. 305
FILM ANALYSIS
Thomas is a strong complement to Styles and Colzie, which adds to his value in this class. While Styles is more of a field player that should thrive in the slot, and Colzie is more of a boundary player, Thomas has a diverse skill set that fits in well at all three wide receiver positions.
Thomas has above-average speed and he's a quality all-around athlete. He's smooth, fluid and shows the ability to do damage after the catch. You wouldn't expect a player that lacks top-level speed to be as good with the ball in his hands as Thomas is at the prep level, but his balance, vision and strength allow him to shine.
His feel for route running is impressive, and it's even more impressive when you consider he splits the year playing football and baseball. Thomas knows how to use his size to get off the line, and his feel for the nuances of route running is outstanding. Thomas also has good ball skills and he's an excellent blocker.
Thomas has battled injuries each of the last two seasons, which is a concern and drags down his grade a bit. He also appears to be much bigger than his listed 185 pounds by Notre Dame.
NOTRE DAME FIT
The 6-1, 205-pound receiver is spent most of his prep career playing outside, where he can use his length, strength and advanced route running technique to thrive.
Thomas is a quality blocker, and he knows how to work himself open over the middle of the field. Those traits could lend to him playing a similar slot role to what we saw from Chase Claypool back in 2017. In fact, I'm interested to see if Thomas can use his size, feel for getting open and ball skills to eventually develop into a quality slot player when it's all said and done.
Thomas doesn't show No. 1 wide receiver traits, but his skills should allow him to be a strong complementary piece to one of the better wide receiver classes in the country.
JOHN GARCIA, SI ALL-AMERICAN ON THOMAS
"Most top Power 5 skill prospects can handle their own on both sides of the ball at the prep level and Jayden Thomas would rank among the best in the country if there were a measure of it. A gifted safety with range and ball skills, he turns it into effortless ball tracking and production on offense. While he may not be freakishly elite in any one area, Thomas offers consistency as a route-runner, blocker and play-maker once the ball is in his hands. Nothing wrong with the accountable third-down possession type."
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