Clevan Thomas is not your typical freshman
Clevan Thomas might be a true freshman, but he's far from your typical true freshman.
He enrolled early. He's the son of a former football great. He was very good in the spring, during a time when most of his fellow 2017 recruits were still in high school.
And now he's starting to learn a second position at Kentucky.
When the coaches on Mark Stoops' staff were asked about freshmen who had impressed them in the spring, they pointed to Thomas.
“He reminds me a little bit of Benny (Snell) in terms of his mentality and how he’s going about it as a freshman,” Gran told reporters in the spring, referring to Thomas.
That praise humbled Thomas, who replied to that praise with the statement that he didn't pick Kentucky expected to sit out his first year. When Lamar Thomas started heaping praise on Thomas, as a pleasant spring surprise, it was only further confirmation that Thomas had established himself as a player to watch during his true freshman year.
And all that was months ago, so it would stand to reason that Thomas has an even better grasp of the playbook and is more physically mature thanks to time with Corey Edmond and Mark Hill in the weight room.
So what's the secret to Thomas' early success, if we can call it that before any real on-field production?
“You know, I’ve just got motivation," Thomas told CatsIllustrated.com this week. "My dad played at FSU and he taught me, told me everything I would encounter. So I already knew everything I was getting into before I got here. So just by him telling me that I was prepared. So when I came in everything was just fluent.”
When Kentucky's first preseason depth chart was released at the start of SEC Media Days in Hoover, Ala., Thomas showed up as the number two "F" receiver behind senior Garrett Johnson.
“I love the slot. That’s where I’m at right now. I feel comfortable there. I’m just learning plays. Learning more day by day, reading coverages and I’m getting better in that position. I like it very much,” Thomas said.
But he's adaptable, as he demonstrated at Kentucky's camp last summer, when he dominated the competition as a receiver then flipped over to the other side of the field and excelled working out as a defensive back.
That adaptability will serve Thomas well as he seeks to get as much early playing time as he can find. He might be able to play more than just the slot, based on what he told CatsIllustrated.com at Kentucky's media day on Sunday.
“When I first got here, I was struggling. I’m not gonna lie to you. But as the spring went on I knew the whole playbook. Then I went from the playbook, now I’m learning some of the “Y” position. Now I’m just branching out and learning some stuff. But from the playbook aspect I know the “F” down pat,” he said.
Charles Walker and David Bouvier are listed as Kentucky's first and second stringers at the "Y" position.
