On the road in a prime-time game against Michigan State last year, Ohio State was on the ropes and in need of a big play when Michael Thomas stepped up.
The Spartans had just blown an opportunity to take a two-score lead late in the second quarter, setting the Buckeyes up at their own 21-yard line. On the first play of the ensuing drive, Thomas faked an outside go-route before darting inside for a quick slant. J.T. Barrett hit him with a perfectly placed pass, and Thomas shrugged off a would-be tackler and raced 79 yards for the game-tying score.
That was the kind of play Thomas made as the Buckeyes' No. 2 option at wide receiver last year, serving as an excellent counterpunch to the quick-striking Devin Smith.
This fall, though, the rising redshirt junior is primed to not only become the Buckeyes' top pass-catcher, but also emerge as one of the nation's best wideouts.
Thomas had an outstanding sophomore campaign—catching 54 passes for 799 yards and nine touchdowns. But as the nephew of legendary receiver Keyshawn Johnson, the expectations for greatness are there.
"I think Mike's doing well," Johnson told Ari Wasserman of The Plain Dealer last October. "He's just scratching the surface. He has to keep doing everything the coaches are asking him to do, continue to keep getting better each week. I think eventually, at some point in time, he'll come into his own, but Mike's still learning how to play."
It took a while for Thomas to get there.
After a surprising performance in the 2012 spring game when he caught 12 passes for 131 yards, many thought he would contribute as a freshman in Urban Meyer's wide-open system. But that fall, he only caught a meager three passes for 22 yards. A year later, he hadn't earned the right to see the field and was eventually redshirted.
"He was the mistake guy," Meyer said of Thomas leading up the '13 season, according to Tony Gerdeman of The Ozone. "Every third play he would go the wrong way or make a mistake and come up with some excuse."
But Thomas showed what he was made of during his year off—taking it as an opportunity to grow.
"It was a tough season redshirting because I knew I probably wasn't going to play, but I'm all about looking forward at my opportunities for this year," Thomas said, via Wasserman. "I just took last season as like a developmental year. That motivates me."
Something clicked as he stood on the sideline.
In a receiving corps loaded with options like Smith, Evan Spencer, Dontre Wilson and Jalin Marshall, Thomas rose up as Ohio State's most consistent pass-catcher, leading the team with 54 receptions last season.
But now, he won't be looked at as a complement to someone else in the passing game—by the Buckeyes coaching staff or opposing defenses this fall. He'll be Ohio State's go-to guy, and to his credit, he's up for the challenge.
"I feel like the whole time I was getting ready for this type of moment, this situation," Thomas said, according to Eric Seger of Eleven Warriors. "Over the years, watching, sitting down, I just had to stay patient and keep working."
So how good can Thomas be this year? Will he be able to thrive while every defense keys in on him?
He's expecting that, and even still, he's setting lofty goals this fall.
Like becoming the first Buckeye receiver to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark since 2002.
"Yeah, I think about it all the time," Thomas said, via Seger. "It's definitely what I want, but I wouldn't say a 1,000—a 1,000-plus."
The coaching staff certainly believes in him. Even though Thomas has been held out for most of spring practice as he recovers from a sports hernia, wide receivers coach Zach Smith thinks the sky's the limit.
“His ceiling is where he sets it,” Zach Smith said, via Patrick Murphy of The Ozone. “It's really limitless. He's a very talented guy.”
David Regimbal is the Ohio State football Lead Writer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @davidreg412.
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