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Georgia Tech Football: A Look Back at the Highest Rated Georgia Tech Recruits Since 2000

By Dylan Callaghan-Croley

Oct 17, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets cheerleaders ride the Ramblin Wreck car before a game against the Pittsburgh Panthers at Bobby Dodd Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 17, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets cheerleaders ride the Ramblin Wreck car before a game against the Pittsburgh Panthers at Bobby Dodd Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports /
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Dec 31, 2014; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets quarterback Justin Thomas (5) accepts his MVP award for the Orange Bowl game at Sun Life Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Barr-USA TODAY Sports /

#8. ATH 4* Justin Thomas – 2012

At one point, Justin Thomas wasn’t going to be a college quarterback. He was also not going to be a Yellow Jacket, he was going to be a cornerback at Alabama. Now, four years later Thomas will be remembered for his stellar career on The Flats.

The top recruit of the 2012 recruiting class, Thomas was considered the 148th best player in the country and the 10th best athlete in the country according to 247Sports’s composite rankings.

Wanting to play quarterback in college, many chose not to offer the 5-foot-10, 176-pound Alabama native due to being undersized as a quarterback. Therefore, Thomas chose to commit to play at Alabama to be a cornerback. Then, Paul Johnson and Georgia Tech came and told Thomas that they wanted him to play quarterback for the Yellow Jackets.

For Thomas, the dreams of playing quarterback at the FBS level was too much to pass up as he decommitted from Alabama and committed to Georgia Tech just one month following his original commitment.

In the 2013 season, his freshman season as a Yellow Jacket, Thomas saw is very limited time, appearing in seven games. Over those seven games he made of 17 passing attempts and 33 rushing attempts.

In 2014, Thomas officially made his mark at Georgia Tech and showed the nation he could play quarterback. In an offense focused mainly around the run, Thomas was able to throw for 1,719-yards and 18 touchdowns in his sophomore season. Add on his 1,086 rushing yards that season and eight rushing touchdowns and Thomas had one of the greatest single seasons in Georgia Tech history.

That season, Thomas would lead the Yellow Jackets to an Orange Bowl victory and top ten ranking. While his junior and senior seasons weren’t as spectacular as his sophomore season, Thomas provided the Yellow Jackets with strong leadership and strong play.

Thomas finished his career at Georgia Tech with the following rankings;

  • Passing Yards: 6th – 4,754
  • Passing Touchdowns: 5th – 40
  • Rushing Yards: 9th – 2,412
  • Rushing Touchdowns: 9th – 22
  • Total Offense: 4th – 7,166
  • Total Touchdowns: 4th – 62 

In the end, Thomas will be remembered as one of the best Yellow Jackets to ever step on the field at Bobby Dodd, not just for his play but for his leadership and sportsmanship that sets the bar at Georgia Tech for standard moving forward. Replacing Thomas going forward will be a major hurdle for the Yellow Jackets.

Hit or Miss: When a player ends up being one of the best in your program’s history, he’s an easy HIT.