Brian Thomas Jr. embraced the impossible expectations.
He was going to Wide Receiver U — and he wanted to leave LSU as a better player than Ja’Marr Chase, Justin Jefferson and Odell Beckham Jr.
Brian Thomas Jr. chose LSU because he wanted to build on its wide receiver legacy[/caption]
“When I went in I wanted to be the best to ever come out of there,” Thomas exclusively told talkSPORT.
“I just want to build off of everything that they already had and everything that they got going.”
In 2024, Thomas is one of the best young wide receivers in the NFL.
He only trails quarterbacks Jayden Daniels, Caleb Williams and Bo Nix in Offensive Rookie of the Year odds, despite playing for the 2-7 Jacksonville Jaguars.
The 6ft 2in and 209lb Thomas has 35 catches for 595 yards and five touchdowns after being the No. 23 overall pick of the 2024 draft.
“Steady, just working, always trying to be the best that I can be as a player and as a teammate,” said Thomas, who was limited in practice on Thursday with a chest injury.
To catch the Jaguars’ attention, he turned three steadily improving years at LSU into 127 total cathes for 1,897 yards and 24 TDs.
While Jacksonville prepared for Brian Flores and the Minnesota Vikings‘ defense on Sunday, Thomas’ former college eyed the biggest game on the weekly college calendar.
No. 15 LSU hosts No. 11 Alabama on Saturday at Tiger Stadium in a key SEC matchup with College Football Playoff implications.
ESPN’s College Game Day crew is set to take over Baton Rouge, Louisiana, while the Pittsburgh Pirates’ Paul Skenes and LSU gymnast Livvy Dunne will be the celebrity guest pickers.
Thomas is making the best of a rough season for the Jaguars[/caption]
Before Ja’Marr Chase was burning NFL defenses, he was an LSU wideout[/caption]
Malik Nabers, Josh Reed, Wendell Davis, Dwayne Bowe and Jarvis Landry helped create Wide Receiver U.
Thomas, who’s from nearby Walker, picked the Tigers in the hope that he could add to the program’s storied NFL legacy.
“It’s all just the way we work,” Thomas said.
“Me and Malik, we seen the guys that did it before us and we tried to be better than them.
“We knew we had to work harder to be better than them. It all goes back to the way that we work.
“We go out there each and every week and give it our all. We learn from each other.”
Trevor Lawrence‘s lingering shoulder injury, which could require season-ending surgery, is another shadow surrounding the Jaguars’ disappointing season.
But Thomas is living up to his NFL first-round status at the same time that LSU is battling for 2024 relevance in a loaded SEC.
The decision to choose Wide Receiver U — and attempt to be better than every big name before him — has only helped Thomas as he’s found his way in the pros.
“We’re just different,” he said.
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