MizzouA couple of months ago, The Star's Steve Penn wrote a piece on Derrion Thomas, son of late Chiefs Hall-of-Famer Derrick Thomas and himself a standout, pass-rusher. In Penn's article, Thomas was said to be leaning towards attending Mizzou. Now, according to Bill Althaus of the Independence Examiner, that appears to be a done deal: Derrion is planning to walk on with the Tigers.
I'm not sure what happened during Thomas' recruiting that could have resulted in him not landing a Division I scholarship. According to this USA Today piece from last December, Thomas was being recruited by Alabama and UCLA, in addition to the Tigers. His huge game against Rockhurst in last year's Missouri 6A semifinals certainly speaks well to his ability to rise to the occasion. And his 15 sacks are just what the Tigers need on defense.
At 6-3, 200 pounds, it's doubtful that we should anticipate Thomas to have much of an impact as a freshman. A rush end in high school at Blue Springs South, Thomas will almost certainly play linebacker at the next level. He played only one full varsity season at South, after having been an all-state swimmer earlier in high school. So he's definitely got talent, pedigree and a lot of room for growth.
I'm no recruiting expert, but this seems like pretty exciting news for Tiger fans.