Deshaun Thomas won the Big Ten’s regular season scoring title and just reached the Elite Eight with his Ohio State teammates before falling to Wichita State on Saturday.
Thomas, however, wants to make sure his spotlight is a shared one. In a very classy gesture, the junior forward wrote a letter to the school’s student newspaper on Monday to make sure that other Buckeye athletes receive the same type of attention that he and his teammates do.
Among the classmates that Thomas namechecked were a two-time NCAA champion wrestler, a standout fencer and a pair of conference-best gymnasts.
As a basketball player at Ohio State, I am both proud and honored that our university follows our sport the way they do. It is a privilege to play for Ohio State, to be a part of winning the Big Ten Tournament this year, and to have made it to the Elite Eight.
I know that athletes in other sports that do not get much press coverage are also winning championships. Just two weekends ago, Logan Stieber won his second-consecutive national championship in his weight class in wrestling, and senior Marco Canevari marked the Scarlet and Gray’s single individual champion title in fencing by securing the gold medal in men’s epee on March 22. A day later, gymnasts Sarah Miller and Aly Marohn captured the Big Ten championship on the balance beam.
Last Tuesday, The Lantern featured an article in which athletic director Gene Smith talked about how Ohio State isn’t just a football school. He talked about the success of our basketball team. It would be good to remember that in the other sports, there is a lot of success too.
All athletes at Ohio State work very hard at being the best they can be at their sport. I wish that all athletes could receive the attention that our football and basketball teams get. They all deserve to be celebrated.
Deshaun Thomas
Third-year in sports management
Continue Reading: Ohio State’s Deshaun Thomas writes classy letter honoring standout athletes from non-rev sports (The Dagger: College Basketball Blog)
