Bears Stay Local With Addition of McClymonds RB Jaivian Thomas
After the departure of the trio of Damien Moore, DeCarlos Brooks and Chris Street to the transfer portal, the Bears added another speedy running back to the roster in 3 star McClymonds (Oakland, CA) High School running back Jaivian Thomas tonight with his commitment to Cal.
“I visited Cal a few months back then I visited again when they first offered,” said Thomas. “Cal as a kid, I always loved them. I’d been to a few games as a kid. It’s a great environment and Cal’s a great place to be.
“When I was out at Cal, everybody greeted me and welcomed me, even if they didn’t know who I was at the time. That just shows what type of locker room they have and what type of players they have at Cal. The coaches are all the same. I really like that about the players and coaches at Cal.”
Besides the comfort level Thomas developed with the program, the relationship he built with Cal running backs coach Aristotle Thompson was also a selling point for the Oakland RB.
“Me and Coach AT have built a great bond over the past few months,” noted Thomas. “We’ve been building that during the process and it will be great to have the opportunity to be coached by him.
“He’s seen a lot of improvement from last year and this year. One thing about me that I show, not only on the offensive side but on defense, is my leadership and taking ownership on both sides of the ball and not being selfish out there.
“I go by ‘The Jet’ because of my speed. I don’t have a lot of size but I bring a lot of speed and physicality to the game and I leave it all on the field.” Thomas noted that he’s both a leader with his play and vocally, as well.
Thomas had a stellar senior season, picking up 2,528 yards at a 14.5 ypc clip, adding 33 touchdowns on the ground and through the air and also played corner on defense for the Warriors, helping lead them to the state championship game last weekend.
The speedy running back also ran a 10.8 100 last year and was on McClymond’s third place 4x100 relay team in this spring’s state championships.
Thomas’s commitment brings the Bears’ total to nine high school commits along with two portal commits from Colorado CB Kaylin Moore and UNLV CB Nohl Williams. The commitment comes a week ahead of the 2022 early signing day window.
Related:
Bears Add Another Portal Transfer in UNLV DB Nohl Williams
Bears Make Their First Portal Addition in CU CB Kaylin Moore