How EDGE pledge Loghan Thomas stayed focused with Notre Dame coaches attending his game
All of the attention was on Loghan Thomas.
The 6-foot-3, 210-pound Notre Dame football commit was the highest-ranked upperclassman recruit in America’s biggest high school football game Friday night. He is the No. 179 overall player, No. 14 EDGE nationally and No. 8 prospect in Ohio.
And he played like it.
The Lakewood (Ohio) St. Edward senior had another stellar performance in the Eagles’ 14-7 road victory over Akron (Ohio) Archbishop Hoban. He finished with 12 tackles and a season-high three tackles for loss to help St. Ed’s achieve a 9-1 regular season record. He also added a quarterback hurry, hit and pass breakup.
Thomas completed that output while facing fellow 2024 class four-star offensive line recruit William Satterwhite. The 6-3, 295-pounder from Archbishop Hoban is the No. 217 overall player, No. 14 interior offensive lineman in the country and No. 11 prospect in Ohio.
Thomas, who verbally committed to the Irish on May 24, did not face Satterwhite on every rep. But when he did, he showed Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman and defensive line coach Al Washington exactly what they were getting when they offered him a scholarship in January.
Although Freeman and Washington did not make it to Dowed Field until late in the fourth quarter, Thomas made several game-changing plays while anticipating their arrival. He led the charge on a goal line stand to end the first half and had his second pass breakup of the season on the game’s first play.
Still, Thomas insisted his mindset stayed unchanged despite being on notice all night.
“It’s just a team sport,” said Thomas, sounding like a seasoned media savvy. “I have all my teammates here. Playing for the person next to me is the biggest thing. I can’t let them down, they won’t let me down. That’s just how I stay level-headed.”
Despite being the driving force on the goal line stand, which became crucial in securing the 7-point victory, Thomas credited his teammates on the play.
“I was part of it,” he said. “But there’s 11 guys on the team, and it took all 11 of us. So, I wouldn’t say I made it, but I was part of it. …
“That was big, stopping them on the 1-yard line,” he said. “They had all the momentum driving down the field. We just came away with a stop. I feel like that sealed it. That just let (Hoban) know they wouldn’t be able to do anything.”
Thomas details Notre Dame coaches attending his game
While Thomas might not have necessarily changed the way he played knowing Freeman and Washington were there, he still appreciated that they came. Notre Dame’s second-year head coach and D-line coach started their day in Chicago and closed it in Akron after stops at Fort Wayne, Ind., and Saline, Mich.
“When it came to making my decision on college, it came to relationships,” Thomas told Blue & Gold. “That just shows you how big of a relationship I have with those guys.”
NCAA rules do not allow coaches to speak to recruits in person off campus during the NCAA Evaluation Period. However, they communicated with Thomas over the phone during the week.
“It’s just the same message every week,” Thomas said. “Just go out there and dominate. Do what you do.”
NCAA rules also prevented Thomas’ family from interacting with Freeman and Washington. But that did not take away from the meaning of them being there.
“They were excited for sure,” he said. “I think they were more excited than me.”
Thomas and his family will get to interact with the Irish coaching staff in person twice over the next month. They plan to attend Saturday’s game against Pittsburgh and the team’s home regular-season finale against Wake Forest on Nov. 18.
Thomas expects to enroll at Notre Dame in January. But until then, all of his attention is on helping St. Ed’s achieve their third consecutive state championship.
“I know I’m going there next year, but this is my team this year,” he said.
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