Richland Source will select one student athlete to be recognized as the Park National Bank Athlete of the Month during the 2023-24 school year. Nominations for Athlete of the Month are accepted from Athletic Directors and Coaches, but are ultimately chosen by Richland Source and are based on the student’s exceptional athletic performance, effective teamwork and achievement in their communities. Park National Bank is proud to support this initiative and is giving the athletic department of each school $1,000 in honor of each athlete chosen.
MADISON TOWNSHIP — Mike Thomas plans to pursue a career as an electrician after graduation and Madison’s senior 113-pounder already is delivering high-voltage performances.
While lightweights at Ontario and Galion have stolen the spotlight during the early portion of the season, Thomas has laid the foundation for an electrifying 2024 after his third-place finish at the 61st J.C. Gorman Invitational at Mansfield Senior over the weekend.
Thomas is 20-3 with 12 pins, including three falls in the 120-pound division at the Gorman. He bumped up to 120 after opening the season with a 113-pound championship at Madison’s Tom Ellis Classic.
He followed his Ellis title with a third-place finish at 120 at the North Canton Hoover Holiday Invitational. He was 6-1 at Hoover, his only loss coming to Mark Mueller of Minerva. He avenged the loss to Mueller with a 5-4 win in the consolation finals.
A week later, Thomas was 5-0 with five pins at 120 at the Newark Catholic Invitational.
His three losses this season have come to Mueller, Ontario’s Jacob Ohl in a dual meet and Galion’s Grady Harding in the Gorman semifinals. Harding is ranked second in Division II at 120, while Ohl is ranked third and Mueller is 10th, according to Ohio high school wrestling insider Billy Schaefer.
A state qualifier at 126 as a junior, Thomas was certified at 113 during his Ohio High School Athletic Association-sanctioned weight-monitoring assessment. The assessment, known as Alpha testing, establishes a wrestlers minimum wrestling weight class based on seven percent body fat.
Which weight class Thomas ultimately ends up in for the postseason is still up in the air.
“We decided to get down (to 113) for Alpha testing and certify for our first tournament just so we had that option,” Thomas said. “It’s not determined quite yet. It’s something I’d like to do, but it’s going to come down to where some other people go, not just in the district but in the state, too.
“We’re trying to line things up for our best option come March to see where I can get highest on the (state) podium.”
Both Harding and Ohl were state-placers at 120 last year.
“There’s a lot of good guys in the area at his weight. He gets overlooked a little bit but, but he likes the underdog role. That’s his mentality,” Madison coach Bryan Mosier said. “He’s one of our blue-collar guys. He doesn’t boast or brag about himself. He just comes in and works hard every day.”
Thomas has quietly gone about his business his entire career. He was 31-17 at 106 pounds as a freshman, taking runner-up at the Sandusky sectional. He moved up to 120 as a sophomore, going 3-10 and again claiming runner-up honors at Sandusky.
As a junior, Thomas was 35-11 and won a Sandusky sectional title at 126. He was the Norwalk district runner-up, punching his ticket to the Division II state tournament.
The bright lights got the better of Thomas in Columbus. He was 0-2 in his first state tournament appearance.
“I was very nervous going out there. It was tough,” Thomas said. “My first match last year, I was starting to get to my offense and it all kind of hit me at once. I kind of just laid an egg. The second match, the kid was just better and bigger.
“(Last year’s state experience) is going to help me a lot this year, too. I’ve been there before. I know what to expect.”
And Thomas expects to make a return trip to Columbus. He gave up football his senior year to focus on wrestling.
“I love the football program and I love the coaches (but) I decided I wasn’t going to play football this year to focus on my goals in wrestling,” Thomas said “Coach Mosier ended up not coaching football because he wanted to focus on his program, so we really put in a lot of work this off-season in the fall and the summer.
“After the state tournament last year, we took a week off and we were right back at it. For me it’s definitely at least get on the podium (at state). That’s my minimum goal right now.”
The postseason will likely be the end of the road for Thomas’ wrestling career. He is studying to be an electrician and plans to attend trade school after graduation.
“I started doing trade work in the electrical field over the summer and I’m doing the (electrical maintenance) class we have at school. I really like that and I can make a good living off of that,” Thomas said. “I could go to college for four or five years and be in debt when I get out, or I can go to (trade) school and make money while I’m in school. That’s how I look at it.
“I worked for a pretty good company over the summer and they are offering to pay for my schooling.”
Even if his wrestling career comes to an end in March, Thomas plans to stay close to the sport. He wants to begin coaching as soon as his work schedule allows.
“That’s a big thing I’ve always wanted to do. Even if it’s in our Biddy program,” Thomas said of coaching. “If we have somebody teaching the same stuff that the high school is teaching throughout Biddy and middle school, when they get to high school they’re going to know what the expectations are. I want to see this program grow.
“I want to give back everything I know. I’m not (acquiring) all this knowledge for nothing. I want to be able to give back.”
Mosier can’t wait to welcome Thomas to his staff.
“He wants to come back and coach and we’re looking forward to having him,” Mosier said. “Mike is such a hard worker and his work ethic is going to serve him well in wrestling and beyond.”