Q&A with Springfield Central LB Tyson Thornton
SPRINGFIELD — This past Wednesday, some of the best players from Western Mass. descended upon the athletic fields at American International College for an Excel Sports Academy clinic.
There were individual drills, and at the end of the workouts, there were 1-on-1's where wide receivers and running backs ran routes against linebackers and defensive backs.
One of the linebackers who fared best was Springfield Central's Tyson Thornton, who basically insisted on using press coverage in every rep. Thornton, who is a member of the class of 2021, has made his mark in the front seven in his two years starting at Central, and proven over and over that he can do the same in coverage, too.
Last season, according to the statistics provided by Maxpreps, Thornton made 62 tackles, including 17.5 for loss, along with 7.5 sacks for the Division 3 state champions.
After the clinic, MassVarsity caught up with Thornton to get his thoughts on how the offseason is going and what he's looking forward to for 2019.
Here is an edited version of that conversation.
MassVarsity: What's it like going up against these kids? I know you see them a lot all year. What's it like going up against them in a setting like this?
Tyson Thornton: Like this? We crank it up to a thousand, and we try to make it as much like a game as much as possible. We ain't friends when we come in here. We're all boys, but we ain't friends when we step in this. If you're my boy, I want you to push me as far as you can. It's your job to make me look bad and look silly.
MV: I know you're a linebacker. You play some defensive end. How fun is it to get out here and get in coverage . . .
TT: I get to show my whole skill-set, everything I do.
MV: Was it fun when you scheduled Everett, Catholic Memorial, Central Catholic for this coming season?
TT: Yes! Yes!
MV: Does that make it a little extra fun?
TT: It makes it exciting. I look forward to the season. I believe this is what God put me on the earth to do. I'd do this all day if I could. They shut the lights out, we'd come out here with flashlights on. It's what we want to do. We do this all day.
MV: Obviously, at quarterback, you guys got Mahari Miller coming back, Isaac Boston coming back, and William Watson is coming in as a freshman. What's it like to have that kind of depth at the quarterback position?
TT: It's like every other position we got. It's loaded. There's competition every week. Every week you could lose your spot. That's what makes it competitive and fun. And you work hard.
MV: What else are you doing this spring?
TT: Lifting and I'm visiting, doing one-days.
MV: Do you have any schedule set up for that?
TT: I'm setting it up right now for this week, actually. I know I'm going to the West Virginia one, for sure, and the UMass one. I've got to get to those ones.
MV: What do you feel like your summer plans are going to be after that?
TT: After that, train as hard as I can. I'm trying not to have any days off.
MV: Are there any other kids at Central that we don't know about yet who might have big years?
TT: There's going to be a whole lot, I promise you. Especially after me, there's going to be a whole lot. There will be a kid just like me standing here that you're going to be talking to.
There were individual drills, and at the end of the workouts, there were 1-on-1's where wide receivers and running backs ran routes against linebackers and defensive backs.
One of the linebackers who fared best was Springfield Central's Tyson Thornton, who basically insisted on using press coverage in every rep. Thornton, who is a member of the class of 2021, has made his mark in the front seven in his two years starting at Central, and proven over and over that he can do the same in coverage, too.
Last season, according to the statistics provided by Maxpreps, Thornton made 62 tackles, including 17.5 for loss, along with 7.5 sacks for the Division 3 state champions.
After the clinic, MassVarsity caught up with Thornton to get his thoughts on how the offseason is going and what he's looking forward to for 2019.
Here is an edited version of that conversation.
MassVarsity: What's it like going up against these kids? I know you see them a lot all year. What's it like going up against them in a setting like this?
Tyson Thornton: Like this? We crank it up to a thousand, and we try to make it as much like a game as much as possible. We ain't friends when we come in here. We're all boys, but we ain't friends when we step in this. If you're my boy, I want you to push me as far as you can. It's your job to make me look bad and look silly.
MV: I know you're a linebacker. You play some defensive end. How fun is it to get out here and get in coverage . . .
TT: I get to show my whole skill-set, everything I do.
MV: Was it fun when you scheduled Everett, Catholic Memorial, Central Catholic for this coming season?
TT: Yes! Yes!
MV: Does that make it a little extra fun?
TT: It makes it exciting. I look forward to the season. I believe this is what God put me on the earth to do. I'd do this all day if I could. They shut the lights out, we'd come out here with flashlights on. It's what we want to do. We do this all day.
MV: Obviously, at quarterback, you guys got Mahari Miller coming back, Isaac Boston coming back, and William Watson is coming in as a freshman. What's it like to have that kind of depth at the quarterback position?
TT: It's like every other position we got. It's loaded. There's competition every week. Every week you could lose your spot. That's what makes it competitive and fun. And you work hard.
MV: What else are you doing this spring?
TT: Lifting and I'm visiting, doing one-days.
MV: Do you have any schedule set up for that?
TT: I'm setting it up right now for this week, actually. I know I'm going to the West Virginia one, for sure, and the UMass one. I've got to get to those ones.
MV: What do you feel like your summer plans are going to be after that?
TT: After that, train as hard as I can. I'm trying not to have any days off.
MV: Are there any other kids at Central that we don't know about yet who might have big years?
TT: There's going to be a whole lot, I promise you. Especially after me, there's going to be a whole lot. There will be a kid just like me standing here that you're going to be talking to.
Comments
Post a Comment