GRAY DEYOSports Writer

With high school football now at full blast, wrapping up week two, the majority of college football teams just started their seasons this weekend. Two former Tullahoma players, Jakobe Thomas and Grant Chadwick, were a part of that, both debuting for their new college programs on national television.

Grant Chadwick

After an impressive season of punting for MTSU freshman punter Grant Chadwick garnered the interest of some bigger schools as soon as the college transfer portal opened. One of the schools being his new home, LSU. He committed to being a Tiger mid-December last year.

It is crazy to think that no longer than two years ago, the former Wildcat was playing at Wilkins Stadium, which can hold a capacity of around 5,500 people. This Saturday, when he suited up and played for the first time for LSU, Chadwick played in a sold out University of Clemson Stadium, which can hold up to 81,500 people. On top of this, the game was nationally televised on ABC, drawing in millions of other viewers.

Chadwick in the contest had four punts with an average of 41.8 yards per punt. His longest punt in the contest went 52 yards. He and the rest of the LSU Tigers got the upset win over the number four-ranked Clemson Tigers. It is the first time LSU has won its season opener since the 2019 season.

Jakobe Thomas

For his final year of college football eligibility, former THS star Jakobe Thomas made a surprising transfer. After one year with the Tennessee Vols, after being a part of the MTSU program for a couple of years, he decided to leave Rocky Top and transferred to the University of Miami. Miami, after having a big year of success with now quarterback of the Tennessee Titans, Cam Ward, was extremely active in the portal to try to maintain that success. Along with the addition of Thomas and 15+ other transfers, they made arguably the biggest signing out of the portal, getting Georgia QB Carson Beck. He and the rest of the Hurricanes opened up their season against the number six ranked team in the country, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. He played well, and Thomas did as well. They grabbed the win, beating the Irish 27-24. This game was also broadcast on ABC.

Thomas was active in the contest, recording a total of four tackles. He also had a big-time fumble recovery in the first quarter.