CHICAGO HEIGHTS — Kyle Thomas was making history Friday night, but both he and Marian Catholic coach Erick Middleton were too caught up in the moment to realize it.
The junior quarterback ran 16 times for 317 yards — on his birthday no less — in the Spartans' 41-40 CCL/ESCC Purple loss to visiting St. Patrick.
That broke Marian's single-game rushing record of 307 yards, set by Cliffton Gordon — also against the Shamrocks — in 2007.
"I wasn't really thinking about it," Thomas said, though "I knew the line was blocking really well. ... It made my birthday even better."
"I had no idea," Middleton said of Thomas' achievement. "I'm thinking, maybe he's got 150, 175 (yards)."
Then after the game Middleton went into the office of athletic director Kevin Kelly, who also is Marian's football statistician. Middleton couldn't believe the stat sheet.
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"I said, 'Kevin, is your math wrong?'" Middleton said.
It wasn't. Thomas picked up his yards in big chunks, ripping off touchdown runs of 79, 63 and 44 yards. For good measure, he also passed for 90 yards, including a 71-yarder to Zion Horn.
How was Thomas able to put up those numbers? Part of it was St. Patrick keying on sophomore running back Randall Nauden, who still ran 11 times for 61 yards and two TDs.
The rest was Thomas just doing what he does.
Middleton said the 6-foot-3, 160-pounder has "breakaway speed."
But, the coach added, "he's got a little power behind him. He lowered his shoulder and ran through guys, ran around guys and ran past guys."
That has helped Thomas pile up 859 yards of total offense through four games for the 2-2 Spartans. He has rushed for 542 yards and four TDs while throwing for 317 yards and three scores.
This isn't the first time Marian has had a productive dual-threat quarterback. The last one, in fact, was Thomas' brother Cam, who went on to play at Illinois.
"He taught me a lot," Kyle Thomas said. "I watched all of his games and I picked up a lot of his moves. He taught me how to stay composed."
Kyle is actually the youngest of three brothers to play for the Spartans; Kendall, a defensive end and linebacker, graduated this past spring.
The brothers were competitive growing up, according to Kyle Thomas. "I was the best basketball player in the house," he said.
Thomas got some varsity experience during the abbreviated spring season, which helped his transition to being the full-time starter this fall.
"I learned I needed to have a clear mind and stay composed," he said. "When I threw an interception I didn't let it defeat me."
Having another big-play option like Nauden in the backfield also helps.
"It's great," Thomas said. "It keeps the eyes off me in certain situations. Randall's a dog."
Thomas hopes to follow his oldest brother's lead and play college football. Now he has some impressive game film to show recruiters.
"I pray this opens some eyes," he said.
Football recap: Merrillville, Valparaiso win to stay unbeaten and atop DAC
Merrillville pulled away from Michigan City and Valparariso held off Chesterton to remain perfect through five games.
Kenneth Grant would be on the field for every play if the choice was up to the Merrillville senior.
Merrillville and Michigan City meet in a DAC matchup.
Valparaiso coaches challenged their offensive line late.
Chesterton and Valparaiso meet in a DAC matchup.
Trey Gibson still considers himself an underdog. He can’t help it.
Hobart and Lowell meet in a Northwest Crossroads matchup.
Sometimes it's better to be lucky than good.
Kankakee Valley and Munster meet in a Northwest Crossroads matchup.
Get live updates from The Times as Week 5 of the season in Indiana and Week 4 in Illinois kicks off.