Cree Thomas Is Helping To Build Brophy Pipeline To Notre Dame

Notre Dame struck gold once again in the Phoenix (Az.) Brophy College Prep pipeline when they gained a commitment from 2025 cornerback Cree Thomas on Monday. That is the same high school as current Irish All American Benjamin Morrison, making that two talented Brophy Prep cornerbacks in the last four classes.

Obviously Morrison has set the bar very high, but Thomas is ready to create his own legacy. According to Brophy Prep head coach Jason Jewell, who coached both Morrison and Thomas. The two are very different players but each brings fantastic upside to the table.

"Both Ben and Cree are obviously extremely talented,” Coach Jewell told Irish Breakdown. "They are a little different players but compared naturally because both are long defensive backs from the same high school.

"Cree has a year to go, but Ben was really far along for his age,” he continued. "He was stronger in the weight room, a little more explosive. Cree is longer and is more of a long strider. Has a little more range and could also play safety.”

Both players also have maturity beyond their years. For anyone who has ever had a conversation with Thomas, that is very evident. He’s an impressive young man, which Jewell reiterated.

"Cree handled recruiting like a champ,” Jewell explained. "He didn't let it get to him at all. He went at his own pace, and took plenty of unofficial visits to weigh his decision. It helps that he has a father that is a college football coach and some other family members with college playing experience that have helped him along the way.”

As impressive of a player, and prospect Thomas is, he is an even better person. You just don’t find many young men as mature, or genuinely as nice as him. When you see that coming from a long and talented athlete, it can be a bit of a surprise. Thomas is the complete package, with substantial upside.

"As a person, you won’t find nicer kids than Cree, respectful, well-mannered, and kind,” said Jewell. "As a player, while he is a good football player now, I think he has a huge ceiling. He is a long cornerback and probably still growing. He is all of 6-1 now and still growing into that frame. He has played safety and corner for us as well as returned punts and kicks. Once he fills out and gains more strength, he will dramatically improve.”

The commitment on Friday is a great moment for Thomas, and the whole community involved. It’s a celebration of a lot of hard work and excitement to continue the Notre Dame pipeline from Brophy.

"Our community is thrilled that he picked Notre Dame,” he said. "The president of our school is a Notre Dame grad and so are several faculty members. Notre Dame has a huge backing at Brophy and even more so since Ben Morrison enrolled there.”

Thomas is the first defensive back to commit in the 2025 recruiting class. He is expected to begin a string of impressive secondary members for what could be a tremendous class overall.

The Arizona native had quickly attracted the attention of several prominent PAC 12 schools, including holding offers from Oregon, Arizona State, Arizona and Cal early on. Thomas also holds offers from the Fighting Irish, Wisconsin and Purdue among others.

The 6-1, 170-pound cornerback is coming off of a outstanding sophomore campaign for Brophy College Prep. Thomas locked down one of the cornerback positions, finishing the season with 33 total tackles, one interception and six pass breakups. He also added in 1.5 tackles for loss and a half of a sack, while also being the team’s main kick and punt returner.

So far as a junior, Thomas has been even better. Through 12 games, he has collected 37 total tackles, five interceptions and four more pass breakups. One of his interceptions was returned for a touchdown.

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Irish Breakdown Content

2023 Scholarship Chart
2023 Football Schedule

Notre Dame 2024 Scholarship Offers

2024 Commit Rankings - Offense
2024 Commit Rankings - Defense

2023 Recruiting Class Grades - Offense
2023 Recruiting Class Grades - Defense

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