Meet the Cardinal Dynamo
Defensive captain Michael Thomas
never curbs his enthusiasm.
FOOTBALL
It’s all smiles and laughter from Michael Thomas. Until he’s hitting people, that is. Thomas’s overpoweringly cheerful disposition
makes you wonder how he gets into his role as free safety—a position that requires seek-and-destroy mode. But curious or not, it
works for him, as well as for his teammates.
Thomas is the defensive captain, as picked by the players, on a
squad with several people who could have filled the role. His off-the-field conviviality converts to irrepressible zeal when he’s in
action, and those around him more than appreciate it. They draw on
it. If he’s vocal because his job demands it, it also comes naturally.
“If everybody’s hearing you, then everybody’s clear,” says
Thomas, a 5-foot- 11, 185-pound senior. “It’s [about getting] lined
up and being able to execute the game plan, or to execute that play.
And definitely as a free safety, that’s your job, so I take pride in
that. I have another safety next to me, Delano Howell [’ 12]; he also
takes pride in being vocal. But I definitely feel like [when I’m] talk-
ing, it gets my teammates going because they just play off of my
enthusiasm, and it’s natural for me. I’m not trying to fake it. I don’t
feel like, oh, that’s something I have to do. That’s just me.”
It also requires being loud. “Exactly,” Thomas agrees, his ener-
gy beginning to push up even his interview volume. “You can’t be
back there whispering, just talking to yourself. It’s all about com-
munication.” And sometimes that communication extends to
opponents, doesn’t it? “Definitely, definitely,” he admits between
chuckles and grins. “I try to stay as clean as possible but,
Kerri Walsh, ’00, who helped spur Stanford to
NCAA women’s volleyball championships in 1996
and ’97 and twice won Olympic gold medals in
beach volleyball, is among the nine new members
of the University’s Athletic Hall of Fame.
The honorees, heavy with stars from the
1990s, also include football’s Bob Whitfield,
’93, an offensive tackle who was named a
first-team All-American in 1990 and ’91 and
went on to a 15-year
career in the NFL. Other
inductees from that era are Mhairi
McKay, ’97, a first-team All-American for
the women’s golf team in 1994, ’96 and ’97;
Alex Kim, ’01, who compiled a 133-25
WALSH
WIN AFTER WIN: For Walsh’s teams, two
NCAA trophies and two Olympic golds.
36 NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2011
hey, sometimes when you’re in the
heat of battle, you might get to
talking with the other team. But
it’s nothing too dirty. I’m not
cheap. I just call it how I see it.”
As a high school player in Houston, Thomas was a quarterback
who piled up yards running the ball from that position. A rival
quarterback known for his throwing was Andrew Luck, ’ 12, now
Thomas’s teammate. In their junior- and senior-season match-
ups as well-established QBs, Luck and his team prevailed both
times. Does Luck ever let Thomas forget? Surprise: Luck tends to
forgo any needling during football reminiscences.
The thing is, they also played varsity basketball against each
other. “Senior year, it’s the end of the game, we’re about to win,”
Thomas recalls. “I’m coming down on a fast break, and I think I’m
about to lay it up, and he comes and swats my ball to the second
row. He always messes with me about that.” ■
row. He
HIGH VOLUME: Thomas
takes pride in being vocal:
‘If everybody’s hearing you,
then everybody’s clear.’
record on the men’s tennis squad from 1997 to 2001 and won a
national singles title in 2000; Stan Spencer, ’91, a first-team All-
America pitcher with a 14-1 record in 1990; and Trisha Stevens, ’91,
whose four years as a letter winner on the women’s basketball
team included the 1990 national championship season.
Men’s basketball great Don Griffin, ’ 69, the school’s fifth
all-time leading scorer when he graduated, represents the late
1960s, and s wimmer Jay Mortenson, ’89, won the 100 backstroke
and 100 butterfly at the NCCA championships in 1988. Don Shaw
was elected with credentials from serving as a head coach for the
women’s volleyball team and later the men’s squad during a
Stanford career spanning more than 25 years.
national singles title in 2000; Stan Spencer, ’91, a first-team All-
America pitcher with a 14-1 record in 1990; and Trisha Stevens, ’91,
whose four years as a letter winner on the women’s basketball
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ROD SEARCE Y/ STANFORDPHOTO.COM; USA VOLLEYBALL
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CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: DON FERIA/ STANFORDPHOTO.COM;
HEADY DAYS FOR FIELD HOCKEY
An 8-1 start to the season shone a sudden spotlight on the field
hockey team, which soared to No. 8 in the national coaches poll,
its highest ranking since reaching No. 6 in 1987. Four of the vic-tories came against teams in the top 20: Cal, SUN Y-Albany,
Northeastern and Indiana. The accomplishment may have been
