The cool thing about watching spring games, especially when there is a new coaching staff, is seeing how certain players are being used in a new system. With the games being open to the public, the play calling will no doubt be guarded, so personal groupings and alignments can give us an idea of what the coaches have been working on to this point.
One of the more interesting tidbits came from Carter Karels, who does a fantastic job covering the Aggies. He pointed out that junior wide receiver spent almost every single one of this spring game snaps from the slot positions. This really stood out because it was a significant increase percentage-wise over last season.
Interesting note on Noah Thomas in the M&W Game. He played 45 snaps, and I counted 44 of them coming from the inside slot position. Less than 30% of his snaps (135/470) last season came from the slot. Not sure I imagined him as a slot receiver, but it worked well in the M&W Game.
— Carter Karels (@CarterKarels) April 21, 2024
There must be something new offensive coordinator Collin Klein sees in Thomas’s skill set and size that made the move worth considering during the spring game. The initial conclusion is that it was a smart decision. Thomas hauled in 7 catches for 82 yards and two touchdowns on a rainy afternoon, with a few of those being contested attempts.
The 6-6 200-pound receiver has shown flashes of how good he can be when he gets the opportunities and has all the traits to develop into a No. 1 receiver this fall. Head coach Mike Elko is very high on him and believes he can maintain the progress so far; we can see big things from him.
“He has tremendous size. He has a large catch radius. He has gotten heathly. It will be important for him to have a strong summer. He has all the makings of a guy we can use as a top target.”
