2021 Mountain West Football Top 50 Players: #9, San Diego State DE Cameron Thomas
The San Diego State defensive end terrorized backfields again and is the highest-ranked Aztec on our list of Mountain West football’s best.
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A nightmare in the trenches.
The San Diego State Aztecs have built themselves a reputation as a program that develops defenders so good for so long that we’re tempted to take them for granted, and the next player on our annual countdown of the Mountain West’s top performers is well on his way to that level of respect.
Cameron Thomas has been dominant from the jump, earning Freshman All-American recognition and a spot on the all-conference first team defense back in 2019 and then elevating his game further with a second first-team nod last fall, joining Alex Barrett as the only SDSU defensive linemen to do that in the program’s time as part of the Mountain West. In 2020, only Alabama’s Christian Barrimore had more quarterback pressures than Thomas’s 38 — a feat he accomplished in just eight games while Barrimore needed twelve — and he compiled 35 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss and four sacks.
Still just a junior, the 6-foot-5, 270-pound Thomas will almost assuredly start getting some serious looks from NFL scouts this fall if he wasn’t already. In the meantime, expect that he’ll continue to be a problem for quarterbacks and running backs across the conference.
Carlsbad Alumni Cameron Thomas with a Big Sack 🔴⚫️ pic.twitter.com/fb7WxDcVgi
— San Diego Football (@Daygofootball) December 13, 2020
Saw some interesting flashes from @AztecFB defensive end #99 Cameron Thomas (@CameronThomas44). Good size and First Team All-MWC as a freshman. Has some twitch and he can bend a little bit. I've yet to take a deep dive into his film but definitely someone to keep on the radar. pic.twitter.com/O8QYQkFzhq
— Selyan (@selyan_fb) May 11, 2021
