At 6-foot-5, 300 pounds, Jake Thomas is a quarterback’s best friend anywhere on the offensive line.
But Thomas figures to become an even more imposing presence in a number of areas for the Columbus High School Falcons as he continues to mature into his body.
Thomas continues to make that progression this spring. The junior is staying busy in a variety of ways, competing in the discus with the track and field team, testing himself against some of the state’s best in powerlifting, and emerging as a dominant offensive lineman in spring football practice.
Thomas will take the next step in that development Saturday when he competes in the 308-pound weight class in the Mississippi High School Activities Association State Powerlifting meet at the Mississippi Coliseum in Jackson.
Thomas is one of five competitors who will represent Columbus High. Two-time defending state champion Justin Verner will compete with Jeremy Morgan at 275 pounds, while Damian Latham (114) and Tyler Calvert (199) also will compete.
Thomas said his growth in the weight room is helping him in every sport.
“It is helping me in powerlifting, too, because I am not afraid to step out of my comfort zone and go up a few more pounds,” Thomas said. “You have to have confidence.”
Thomas had a total combined of 1,285 pounds and was the top seed for the Class 6A meet. He improved his total 10 pounds — and increased his best total in the bench press 20 pounds to 260 — to qualify for the Class 6A part of Saturday’s festivities.
Those numbers only figure to improve as Thomas grows comfortable with his body. He said a shoulder injury as a freshman slowed his attempts to build strength in his upper body. He said he also is learning how to use his long arms to his advantage in the weight room. He admits is still is a “struggle” at times to match the strength of some of his teammates, but he said he longer makes excuses for himself.
“I can’t justify being weak by just having long arms,” Thomas said. “I came to a point where I decided I had to grow up.”
Thomas said that realization didn’t come easy. Instead of allowing bigger lifts to intimidate him, he said he has focused on exercises like pushups to help him build his upper body strength. The improvements might not be massive, but he feels he is moving forward.
“I can (do more repetitions). That seems to be more important,” Thomas said. “I feel more comfortable.”
Thomas’ prowess on the football field already has attracted interest from a number of schools, including Mississippi State University, the University of Mississippi, and the University of Alabama.
Columbus High powerlifting coach Brandon Brown has seen the work Thomas has invested in the weight room pay off on the field.
“Jake has made tremendous strides,” Brown said. “Last year, he may have been right at 225-230 at the bench press. Right now he is right around 275.
“The key is the work he has put into it. He is going to get one of those big offers. It is mainly because of his dedication and his work ethic. It is not only in (the weight room), but it also is in the classroom and on the field. I think the biggest thing with Jake is mental. With him being so big and tall, the bench press is real, real hard for him. Once he gets over that mental hurdle, it is really going to pay off. I can see it paying off on the field, just from him knowing he is bigger and stronger, he is starting to dominate on the field.”
Still, Thomas isn’t getting overconfident. He hesitates to say he is a role model teammates can look to to gauge progress in the weight room. Instead, he prefers they use a different approach when they want to judge how they can use the weight room to get stronger and to build confidence.
“I don’t want players who try to look up to me to ever make excuses for themselves,” Thomas said. “I don’t want them to make justifications for anything, like being weak or being slow, or anything like that.”
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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