James “JT” Thomas, former linebacker of the West Virginia Mountaineers, will soon 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.
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. prediksi mix parlay Returning to outside linebacker, Thomas led the team in tackles and became a group All-Star because the Rockets finished their 11-game regular season 10-1. Thomas attempted to transport his success from semi-pro ball to the Arena Football League in 1997 with the Albany Firebirds, but sustained a vocation ending leg injury on the 3rd day of training camp.
Instead of a helmet and pads, the next phase 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! Positioned 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.
During the 2003 season, Thomas took over full ownership of the WHAM! When he stepped off the WHAM! sideline in 2005, he chose to shift his focus full-time towards developing the success of semi-professional football and the WHAM! franchise. In the two years since he’s 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 passion for semi-professional football is matched only by his need to start 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.