DeAnthony Thomas as The Black Mamba
Crenshaw (Calif.) five-star athlete De'Anthony Thomas wants to major in drama, but doesn't want major drama.
Schools from coast-to-coast used Sept. 1 as a reintroduction to Thomas' recruitment. The contact period even sparked rumors of a de-commitment from USC.
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"I'm not de-committed," said Thomas. "I don't know who keeps saying that. I think that started because I visited UCLA for their scrimmage. I was there with Jordan Payton. It was cool and I enjoyed it, but I'm solid with USC."
Solid for several reasons, one of which, most people don't know.
"Well you know, I always wanted to be a Trojan and I always wanted to play in the Coliseum," said Thomas. "I think I bleed cardinal and gold and I want to be close to home. I will have a lot of family support and fan support at USC.
"And USC is great in film, which is what I want to major in."
While talk of Thomas' de-commitment is fiction, his interest in film and acting is influenced by Pulp Fiction.
"I'm trying to do it big when I get older," said Thomas. "I want to do it all, not just be football a player. Football may not last. My favorite actor is Ving Rhames."
The sidelines at USC football games may no longer play host to actors and television personalities, but Saturday's home opener against Virginia should play host to several high school football All-Americans, including Thomas.
"Yup, I'll be there," said Thomas. "I'm excited. Coach (Kennedy) Pola is recruiting me for USC, but I've never met him. Saturday will be the first time."
In fact, Thomas hasn't been on an unofficial visit to USC since the Rising Stars Camp in June. That experience, however, is still fresh in his memory.
"It was great because a lot of the coaches thought I was coming to play running back," said Thomas. "Instead, I went with the corners and battled one-one with the wideouts. I did really well, and stopped them.
"Then coach (Lane) Kiffin kept trying to test me, to see if I was really a corner. I think I showed him enough because in seven-on-seven the defense was killing the offense.
"Coach Kiffin called me over and asked me to play running back for couple of plays to help the offense and show what I could do. I thank God for giving me the ability to play both ways and being a threat on both sides of the ball."
Thomas' five-star status as an athlete is a testament to his skills with or without the football in his hands.
Last week, Thomas' jumped on a plane for a five hour flight to Georgia for a nationally televised duel with North Gwinnett High School. Although the contest was Crenshaw's first of the year, in was North Gwinnett's third.
Thomas began his senior season running for 115 yards and two touchdowns on just six carries. Crenshaw lost to North Gwinnett 17-12, but Thomas can't wait for this Friday.
"I'm just looking forward to getting back out there," said Thomas. "I can't wait. Norco gave us a great game last year, so we have to play better this week."
Thomas just wants to play. While totaling more than 130 yards of offense last week, he missed most of the second half due to dehydration and cramping. As with last week's game, Crenshaw will play in front of a television audience on Fox Sports.
USCFootball.com will continue to bring you the latest on De'Anthony Thomas throughout his senior season.