Just another Football weblog

James “JT” Thomas, former linebacker of the West Virginia Mountaineers, will be inducted into the Minor League Football News Hall of Fame on Thursday, December 6, 2007 at the Oasis Resort Hotel & Casino in Mesquite, Nevada.

Thomas’ nomination was reviewed by the MLFN’s Board of Directors, and he received notification of his acceptance on July 30.

“It is truly an honor to be receiving this award,” said Thomas. “I owe a big thank you to everyone for supporting me through the years.”

Thomas has used strong leadership skills, tireless work ethic, and passion for the game to become a driving force in the development and promotion of minor league and semi-professional football across the Midwest.

The story of JT Thomas’ football career can be broken into three distinct chapters: player, coach, and executive. Thomas’ collegiate career started at Fort Scott Community College (Kansas) in 1992. Following his sophomore season, Thomas transferred to West Virginia University (WVU).

In two seasons at Fort Scott – both as team captain – Thomas earned two All-Kansas Jayhawk Conference honors at outside linebacker and Defensive Player of the Game in 1992’s Valley of the Sun Bowl. At inside linebacker for WVU, Thomas received two Mountaineer Club Awards for on-field excellence, earned two All-Big East team honors, and won Defensive Player of the Game in the 1994 CarQuest Bowl. He also led both teams in tackles each season.

A successful college career led Thomas to the semi-pro football circuit in 1996 with the Charleston Rockets, where he was able to play with former WVU great Major Harris. Returning to outside linebacker, Thomas led the team in tackles and became a league All-Star as the Rockets finished their 11-game regular season 10-1. Thomas attempted to carry his success from semi-pro ball to the Arena Football League in 1997 with the Albany Firebirds, but sustained a career ending leg injury on the third day of training camp.

Instead of a helmet and pads, the next step of Thomas’ football career featured a headset and clipboard. After a stint as Defensive Coordinator for a championship team of 13-16 year olds, Thomas returned to semi-pro football in 2000 as Head Coach of the West Virginia WHAM! Located in Morgantown, WV, Thomas compiled a .695 winning percentage (41 wins, 18 losses), won three Coach of the Year awards, and coached three league All-Star games in six seasons as WHAM! head coach.

In 2001, Thomas also led the WHAM! to the Mid-Ohio Football League (MOFL) Championship.

During the 2003 season, Thomas took over full ownership of the WHAM! When he stepped off the WHAM! sideline in 2005, he decided to shift his focus full-time towards developing the success of semi-professional football and the WHAM! franchise. In the two years since he has stopped coaching, Thomas has held executive positions within the Ohio Valley Football League and the MOFL. In January of 2007, Thomas was promoted to MOFL Commissioner.

Currently, Thomas oversees the day-to-day operations of the MOFL – an expanding, 10-team semi-pro league across Ohio, Michigan, and Kentucky. His love for semi-professional football is matched only by his desire to see the MOFL – and every minor league football organization – produce a football product that is competitive, organized, developed, and entertaining for the players in the game and the fans in the stands.

Thomas also serves as a Semi-Professional Sports Consultant with League Level, LLC, a company that provides marketing and promotional strategies for organizations with an emphasis in amateur and semi-professional athletics.

He currently resides in Morgantown, WV, with his wife Rochelle and two children, Jared, 3, and AJ, 10 months. Thomas also has son, JT Thomas III, from a previous relationship.

Football is highly important in America! Fans are highly excited about their teams, whether they are high school, college, or pro football. As you might imagine, sports American football news is in high demand during football season and even more so during the play offs.

There are different sources that everyone knows they can turn to. ESPN is a big one. They carry many football games each week, and scores for even more. There are other channels that do the same thing during football season. You can even subscribe to magazines that are full of news about football.

High school football is important to students, teachers, parents, and others in the community. Usually the best place to get news about high school football is the local newspaper or news channels. Some news channels may show local scores on their website, too. Often scores and other information about high school football travel by word of mouth. High school football is more community based than college and pro football.

College football is a favorite pastime in America, particularly in certain regions of the country. Sometimes high school students who are considering attending certain colleges are particularly interested in the scores. In addition, students and alumni, teachers, parents, and just fans all want to know the college football scores.

During bowl season, college football scores become even more important. Fans want to know which team will be named the national champion, and where their team ended up in the rankings. Many people pay a lot of money to get tickets for these important games.

So where can you get your sports American football news during this important time during football season? There are numerous sources. You can check newspapers, radio stations, websites, and both local and national news channels. There are special sports channels dedicated just to college sports that will give you all the college football scores you want!

Pro football is popular in America, too. The Super bowl is one of the biggest annual events in sports in America. Practically everyone has an opinion about who will win, and even the commercials are news.

During the regular season, plenty of people are sitting in front of their televisions or sitting in the stadiums on Sundays, watching pro football. During the play offs that number increases. There are so many sources for pro football news. Newspapers, radio, and television all carry pro football scores. The Internet is another great source.

As you can see, there is no shortage of methods for finding out sports American football news. Whether you like high school, college, or professional football, you will be able to get news about the sport twenty-four hours a day, no matter where you are in America.