The football team’s quarterback battle was one of the most scrutinized points going into head coach Dave Doeren’s first season.
Doeren refused to tip his hand throughout preseason practice as to who his quarterback would be, waiting until the last minute to reveal whether graduate student Brandon Mitchell or redshirt junior Pete Thomas would replace the recently graduated Mike Glennon.
When the Wolfpack took the field in the season opener last Saturday against Louisiana Tech, Mitchell, a transfer from Arkansas, lined up under center.
Just as Wolfpack Nation thought they finally had some stability at the position, Mitchell went down in the first quarter with a broken bone in his foot. He will be out for 4-6 weeks, giving Thomas an opportunity to lead the Pack’s offense.
“It was definitely not the way I wanted to become the starter.” Thomas said.
The transfer from Colorado State, who sat out last season in compliance with NCAA transfer rules, completed 15 out of 27 passes for 212 yards in his Wolfpack debut. He will get the start on Saturday against Richmond.
While at Colorado State, Thomas completed 414 of 652 passes for 4,269 yards and 18 touchdowns. He completed .647 percent of his passes as a freshman at Colorado State which set a school record.
Despite the intense competition for playing time, Thomas views himself, Mitchell and all the other quarterbacks on the roster as a family. This applies not only in practice but away from football as well.
“We’re really close off the field, in the meeting room and obviously on the field,” Thomas said. “I believe that’s what makes a quarterback successful. All of us are tight friends and always helping each other out.”
Thomas arrived at State while Tom O’Brien was still at the helm. Doeren’s spread offense is different from O’Brien’s pro-style scheme, and Thomas acknowledges that adjusting was no walk in the park.
“It was difficult at times,” Thomas said. “I’ve never run a spread offense before. All the offenses I’ve been in have been pro-style. But this happens all the time in college football, so I have to make the best of it.”
Thomas is faced with the inevitable task that all collegiate athletes must tackle—balancing his studies with his sport. But Thomas, who graduated high school a semester early with a 4.0 GPA, said he feels like he has a solid handle on all aspects of being a student-athlete.
“It’s definitely a challenge, but I came here to get a degree as well as play football,” Thomas said. “The coaches do a great job of staying on top of things and making sure we get our schoolwork done and go to class.”
Thomas said his older brother, Chris, is his inspiration to play football. Chris Thomas recently completed a wrestling career at the Air Force Academy.
“We have a real good relationship with each other,” Thomas said. “We’re best friends.”
A native of El Cajon, Calif., Thomas grew up rooting for the San Diego Chargers, whose quarterback is former Wolfpack great Philip Rivers. Now he occupies the spot where Rivers once stood—first-string quarterback for N.C. State.
“It’s too bad that Brandon got hurt. He’s a great teammate, a great friend, and a great competitor.” Thomas said. “But stuff like that happens in football. Now I have to prepare and do whatever I can to help this team win.”
