Banner Thomas understands that in order to excel, you must push yourself beyond what is expected. “I did not improve as an athlete until I started doing more than what my coaches required,” says the Ware Middle School eighth grader. Thomas is a wrestler, but he also plays football, swims, and will also run track. Last year, he won the AAU Florida State Championship wrestling at 125 pounds. At the same tournament, he decided to also wrestle up at 130 pounds; he finished second in the tournament at 130 pounds. At the tournament, Thomas wrestled 11 matches in less than six hours.
Coaches tell stories about his workout regimen that go above and beyond the normal practice routines.
“We’ll run them until their tongues hang out,” says Jon Tindall, one of Banner’s wrestling coaches. “After that, we have them do drills and live wrestling for an hour. It’s a tough practice we put our boys through.”
When practice is done, Thomas puts on his earbuds and has his dad follow him while he runs to a store nearly two miles away. Thomas does extra running because he believes the final period is where mental toughness and being in good condition wins matches.
“I also know that sixth- and seventh-graders are watching team leaders. When I was a sixth-grader, Sam Dudley was an eighth-grader and had a big influence on me. Maybe a sixth-grader will see me as an example.”
Thomas is on schedule to be a three-time middle school conference championship finalist. He finished second in the conference his sixth-grade year and won the conference championship last year. His final middle school conference championship run does not occur until late January, and he acknowledges how difficult it will be to return to the finals. He finished fourth (120 pounds) in the USA Georgia State Championship in Atlanta last year, wrestling in front of thousands at the Georgia Dome.
“He has eleven wins with no losses this year and faced some stiff competition,” says Ware Middle Wrestling head coach Matt Collins. He has eight pins and two techs. He has only had six points scored against him all year. When you think of wrestlers who love the weight room and play linebacker and fullback on the gridiron, thoughts of extreme intensity come to mind.”
Banner’s coaches describe him as someone who handles pressure well. It is his commitment to fitness and unflappable demeanor that make him want to pursue a military academy. He spent a full week in West Point, New York at the U.S. Military Academy last summer. He attended combined sessions of Ranger Intensive Training and Wrestling Camp at the famous campus on the Hudson River.
“We began every morning at 5:00 a.m. with a five-mile run,” Banner says. “We would have four wrestling sessions throughout the day and leadership development seminars from West Point faculty. I loved every minute of it. West Point is one of the more challenging universities to attend, but I hope my work ethic can produce the opportunity.”
His parents, Clay and Brooke Thomas, take a unique look at his athletic ability. “His mom and I encourage him to play a variety of sports,” Clay says. “We are not advocates of focusing on a sport. We understand that there can be benefits to focusing on a sport if you’re pursuing college scholarships, but his job right now is to be a kid, a teammate, a student, and a Christian…and not in that order.”
Chad Starling, Athletic Director at Ware Middle, has seen him compete and practice hundreds of times, but will always remember a request Banner made earlier this year: He asked that a prayer breakfast be held for his team.
“He even said he would give the first devotion,” Starling says. “I will remember the exhausted football player at the end of his final, middle school football game, asking if he could present the game ball to a teammate’s grandmother and devoted fan who was very ill.”
Coach Amy Fitzgerald, Banner’s swim coach, always knew she could count on him to work hard. On one occasion, Thomas came straight from wrestling practice and missed track time with the swim team. Although excused from doing the running, he insisted on doing makeup on his own time.
“He swam during Christmas break to make up practice time he missed due to wrestling,” Coach Fitzgerald says. “This kid gets it!”
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Rising Star
Banner Thomas
Ware Middle School
By Rob Asbell
Ware Middle Standout “Gets It”
