Bell newcomer eager to test himself against tougher foes

If you’re going to help Derek Thomas make a tackle, you’d better get there in a hurry. Thomas, a senior move-in from the Highland School in Irving, entered this season with 116 tackles in three varsity seasons. Of those, 79 were solo tackles.

Now, Thomas is playing safety for the Hurst L.D. Bell football team. He’s excited to have the chance to tackle players at the highest level of high school in Texas, Class 6A.

“Defensive back might be my No. 1 position. It gives me joy coming down and hitting people,” he said with a chuckle. “A solo tackle feels good. I like to be there first.”

Given his speed, it’s hard to beat Thomas no matter where he is on the field. At the Highland School, a Class 3A Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools program, he played a multitude of positions from quarterback to defensive back.

His career statistics included over 2,200 all-purpose yards, with nearly 1,500 rushing yards and almost 500 passing yards. He ran for, threw for and caught passes for touchdowns. Oh, and he returned kicks, scoring 24 touchdowns so far in his career.

On defense, he came into this season with eight interceptions.

“He’ll be one of our punt returners and potentially on some kickoff returns,” L.D. Bell coach Mike Glaze said. “And if he stays healthy, we could use him in receiver spots. He is explosive.

“At the next level, I see him as a slot receiver.”

The next level is college, where Glaze said he has confidence Thomas can play.

“Definitely, he’s got some skills that could get him there,” Glaze said. “He hadn’t played against this level of competition [6A] before, but he’s here and he’s fitting in nicely.”

Thomas was already familiar with the Bell system. His cousin, senior defensive tackle Eric Herron, was already on the varsity.

“I always had somebody to go to with him here, but the players also welcomed me, and that made the transition easier,” he said. “I’d seen several of them at camps.

“I’m a pretty cocky player, but I felt I had to prove something, coming from a private school. I wanted to show them it’s all football.”

Thomas is also excited for his senior season because of a sour ending to his junior campaign. He was a TAPPS all-state selection as a sophomore, but last season, because of a technicality, he wasn’t honored despite having his best season to date, accounting for over 1,400 all-purpose yards.

His team did not have enough players and had to forfeit its final game. He said that kept he and any teammates from receiving any accolades.

“We were told because of that we weren’t eligible,” he said.

Thomas transferred to Bell midway through the 2015-16 school year and was on the track team. He plans on doing so again this school year, along with playing baseball.

“I like staying busy,” he laughed. “As you can tell.”

As for college, he is considering joining his brother Desmond at the University of North Texas. He plans to major in pre-law.

But first he wants to help the Blue Raiders re-establish themselves as a playoff contender after back-to-back 1-9 seasons.

“I think we are going to surprise some people,” Thomas said. “I think this is a good season to be playing for Bell.”

This story was originally published August 29, 2016 at 11:14 AM with the headline "Bell newcomer eager to test himself against tougher foes."