Inside The Chart: Playing The Hits

Playing The Hits: Celebrating Charlie Thomas, Georgia Tech’s hard-hitting linebacker who will be making one last bone-crunching curtain call at Bobby Dodd Stadium on Saturday vs. Miami

By Andy Demetra (The Voice of the Yellow Jackets) | Inside The Chart

Charlie Thomas has a zoological beef with Brent Key.

Georgia Tech’s head coach described his senior linebacker as a water moccasin for the way he uncoils and strikes at opposing ball carriers. Nothing wrong with that comparison, of course. It’s a perfectly respectable, intimidating animal. But Thomas is a fan of wildlife shows. Watches them regularly on TV and YouTube. He has a particular fondness for exotic cats. And he has his own ideas for his spirit animal.

“I’d rather compare myself to a lion,” Thomas said, Cheshire Cat grin spreading across his face.

“They’re the king of the jungle. They roam, and whenever they get hungry, they go eat.”

Five years of stalking opponents and preying on ball carriers at Bobby Dodd Stadium will come to an end Saturday for the 6-foot-2, 207-pounder, who makes his final appearance at home when Georgia Tech faces Miami on Senior Day (3:30 p.m. ET, Georgia Tech Sports Network from Legends Sports). Thomas’ final home week started off memorably, earning ACC Linebacker of the Week for his 16-tackle performance against Virginia Tech. A day later he accepted an invitation to the East-West Shrine Bowl, a showcase for the top senior college football players in the country.

“He’s got an uncanny ability to put a nose on the ball, and that’s instinctual. A lot of that is an inherent trait that can’t be taught, and Charlie has that,” Key said.

With his career high against Virginia Tech, the Thomasville, Ga., native is now tied with teammate Ayinde Eley for third in the ACC in tackles (86). But Thomas may also lead the conference – and possibly the nation – in the number of punishing, lay-down-and-stay-down hits he’s delivered throughout the year.

Thomas’ tackling ability has inspired a rare level of reverence in the Georgia Tech locker room. Even his defensive teammates, no strangers to collisions themselves, are left awestruck.

“It’s amazing. I don’t know how he does it. And it hypes everybody up,” said cornerback Zamari Walton.

“There’s this kind of moment of truth where Charlie finds people in space and just explodes out of his hips. A lot of people will hesitate in those moments. But Charlie has that knack for it,” said defensive coordinator Andrew Thacker.

Defensive tackle D’Quan Douse had a close-up view this weekend when Thomas laid a jarring hit on Virginia Tech quarterback Grant Wells during a first quarter scramble. During the play, Douse noticed a yellow, plastic half-moon tumbling through the air.

Thomas had hit Wells so hard, his own mouthpiece flew out.

“I didn’t actually have it in. It was on the top of my helmet,” Thomas confessed.

“I was like, “Wow. He just lit him up,’” Douse recalled thinking. “Seeing it firsthand, you’d be kind of surprised how much power he can pack into his hits.”

Those hits may make for good social media content, but Key doesn’t want the visceral side of Thomas’ game to overshadow his cerebral side.

“The thing that he’s done a great job of this year is really knowing the plays before they happen. When you can anticipate through your preparation and your study what’s going to happen, it puts you even a step closer. And then, obviously, he makes the play when he gets there,” Key said.

Thomas says he finds something poetic in sharing the team tackles lead with Eley, his fellow senior who will also be participating in Saturday’s Senior Day ceremonies. Without his influence, he says, he doubts he’d be enjoying this level of production.

“That’s my brother for sure,” Thomas said. “Whenever we see each other’s weaknesses, we’re going to tell each other that. We keep it ‘1K’ with each other. Outside of football, he’s such a mature person. I’ve learned a lot from him off the field, how he handles stuff. He’s just a different level of guy.”

Thomas and Eley have become a familiar sight after Georgia Tech practice, often spending more than 10 minutes together working on technique and form drills. One day it could be tackling in space or catching passes. Another day it could be zone drops or taking on blocks. With rare exception, they’re the last players to leave the field.

That extra work could lead to a mutual milestone for them: Thomas and Eley are on pace to become the first Georgia Tech teammates to finish with 100 tackles in the same season since 2003, when Keyaron Fox (158), Daryl Smith (128) and James Butler (119) did it.

“There’s no selfishness from them. It’s all about the team. If one of them is called to take on a block so the other one can be free, they’re going to do it. They’re not going to try to do their own thing and make their own play,” Key said.

Added Thacker: “I’m so glad that their production is matching the value that they bring to the locker room.”

That maturity wasn’t always part of the package. Thomas admits as much. He had shown flashes of playmaking early on, making six starts as a true freshman and leading the Yellow Jackets with three fumble recoveries. He earned his first ACC Linebacker of the Week award as a sophomore when he became the first Tech player since Jeremiah Attaochu to finish with nine tackles and two sacks in a game. But Thomas points to a humbling moment during Georgia Tech’s loss to Syracuse in 2020, when he gave up a long passing touchdown late in the third quarter and the Jackets trailing 23-20.

“I’m guessing it’s going to be slants. I lined up outside leverage, and then I moved inside leverage before the snap to bait the quarterback. He ran a different route. He ran the vertical route. I was in a bad position from the start,” Thomas recalled.  Tech would go on to lose 37-20.

All players make mistakes; it’s part of the entry fee for playing high-level football. And all playmakers have ego, a belief that they can bend any play to their will. But this particular mistake gnawed at Thomas.

“Up until then, I thought I was the best person in the world and nobody could tell me nothing. When that happened, it was eye-opening. I was like, ‘You’re really not that good.’ I had to go find myself and just figure out who I was as a person,” he recalled.

Thomas used that low point as a turning point, transforming himself into the dedicated, detail-oriented leader he’s become today. In 2021, he landed on the honorable-mention all-ACC team, his first career postseason recognition. ESPN’s Todd McShay named him the No. 13 outside linebacker prospect for the 2023 NFL Draft. Those expectations have only grown as the hits have piled up in his senior season.

But Thomas realizes that reality can hit hard too. As his Georgia Tech career comes to a close, he’s tried to slow down and appreciate all the little things he may have taken for granted.

“I’m just trying to live in the moment and create memories,” he said.

He’ll have one final chance to create memories at Bobby Dodd Stadium this Saturday. Like Tech, Miami will also be fighting to keep its bowl hopes alive.

“They like to spread the ball out. We’ve got to tackle well, swarm the ball, and try to get some turnovers,” Thomas said.

Tackle well? Sounds like he may know a guy.