Virginia Tech Football: Logan Thomas Is Poised to Join Nation's Elite

Landry Jones and Tajh Boyd just got praised for doing it last week, but it appears that the Sooner and the Tiger were not the only quarterbacks who used their spring breaks to get some extra teaching. Virginia Tech's Logan Thomas took a trip out to California earlier this month as well.

The results were pretty surprising. as Thomas walked away not only impressing George Whitfield but spurring the longtime coach to inquire about where NFL teams viewed the sophomore.

The results were quite telling, as Thomas pulled in behind EJ Manuel and everyone's All-American, Matt Barkley, on the "QB who can go early" list.

High praise for the kid who has only started one season. But, anyone who has watched him play sees the massive ball of potential that is Logan Thomas.

To compare him to some of the other big-time quarterback prospects we've seen in recent years is to do the kid a disservice. He's not polished like Andrew Luck or Matt Barkley. He isn't the video game stat machine that we've seen come out of the spread offense like Sam Bradford. He isn't a burner like Robert Griffin III. 

Logan Thomas is just Logan Thomas. A big kid with tremendous arm strength, solid mobility, a growing pocket presence and a continuously improving decision-making process.

While he might not be on the national radar like Matt Barkley, this kid is poised to step into the spotlight in the 2012 season.

The Hokies lose David Wilson at the running back spot, and the onus will be on Thomas to be the center of their offense. This prototype of a player is going to have to improve upon his solid first-year campaign if the Hokies want to make it four straight BCS bowl births.

Keep an eye on Thomas as he emerges from the experiment role to one of the nation's elite quarterbacks.

Watching him develop from game one to game 14 was interesting. Some games were tougher than others on Thomas, but as a whole, for a first-year starter, he exceeded the expectations I had for him.

This year, eyes will be trained on him, not as a converted quarterback, but as a player expected to lead the team. How he responds will say a lot about his emergence on the national landscape.