He’s also a former SEC product
Fran Brown and the Syracuse Orange are starting the New Year off right by adding an experienced defensive lineman to the 2025 squad.
6’6″, 327 lbs. Chris Thomas Jr., a rising senior who spent the last two seasons with the Marshall Thundering Herd, will spend his final year of college football with SU:
Recruitment closed pic.twitter.com/mugxLzEyEs
— Chris Thomas (@chris_thomas850) January 1, 2025
Thomas is the older brother of 2025 Syracuse recruit Eric “EJ” Thomas, a three-star defensive tackle. It’s a similar situation to that of Fadil and Fatim Diggs from last offseason – an established starter joining his brother’s team for a year.
Chris started all 12 games for the Herd last season, accumulating 43 tackles (nine solo), a sack, two pass breakups and a fumble recovery.
He was originally recruited by Florida and spent two seasons with the program before transferring to Marshall. The Tallahassee native also had initial offers from his hometown FSU, Miami, Texas A&M, and Tennessee.
Since entering the portal for a second time, Thomas received offers from Syracuse, Maryland, UAB, Toledo, North Texas, Arkansas State, and Southern Miss.
The Orange defensive line will face little turnover, with Maraad Watson, Chase Simmons, Denis Jaquez, Kevin Jobity, Elijah Fuentes-Cundiff, David Omopariola, and KingJoseph Edwards all set to return. Fadil Diggs and Dion Wilson are the two big departures.
Michael Nwokocha, a JuCo transfer who made one appearance for SU this season, is also leaving via the portal.