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City legend Ky Thomas thankful to get chance to close out college career with hometown Bods
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
After putting together a legendary four-year high school career for Topeka High, Ky Thomas' college career took him to Minnesota, Kansas and, most recently, Kent State, with Thomas enjoying varying degrees of success at all three Division I schools.
Topeka High legendary tailback Ky Thomas is set for his final collegiate football season at Washburn. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
But now the 5-foot-11, 205-pound tailback is back in the city where it all started, playing for the hometown Washburn Ichabods, and he couldn't be happier.
"I'm definitely excited to get going, especially now that we're putting on the pads,'' Thomas said following Thurday's Washburn practice in Yager Stadium. "Everybody's excited.''
A 2020 Topeka High graduate, Thomas finished his prep football career for the Trojans in 2019 as the city's all-time rushing leader and the No. 2 rusher in state history with 7,703 yards, including 3,009 yards as a senior, when he was named the Gatorade Player of the Year.
Thomas began his college career at Minnesota, where as a redshirt freshman he led the Gophers with 824 rushing yards and six touchdowns on 166 carries and capped his Minnesota career with 144 rushing yards and a touchdown on 21 carries, earning offensive most valuable player honors in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl in Phoenix.
Thomas then transferred to Kansas for the 2022 season, rushing for 162 yards and two touchdowns on 53 carries while catching five passes for 39 receiving yards and a TD. Thomas scored two touchdowns, on a 29-yard pass reception and a 2-yard run, in Kansas’ 55-53 triple-overtime loss to Arkansas in the Liberty Bowl.
After re-entering the transfer portal, Thomas spent the past two seasons at Kent State. Thomas had to sit out the 2023 season due to a now-abolished NCAA transfer rule before leading the Golden Flashes in rushing last fall by more than 400 yards with 549 yards and a TD on 135 carries (4.1 average).
Work ethic, perseverance pay off for former T-Bird Orrin Busenitz with Ichabod football
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Four years ago Orrin Busenitz started his college football career on the bottom rung of the Washburn University football ladder after a standout career at Shawnee Heights.
Former Shawnee Heights standout Orrin Busenitz, a former walk-on, has worked his way up the depth chart for Washburn football to become a mainstay on the offensive line. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
But through hard work and perseverance, the 6-foot-2, 295-pound junior right guard has progressed from walk-on status to becoming a mainstay on the Ichabods' offensive line, earning the respect of his coaches and teammates along the way.
"Since his freshman year he came in and earned himself a spot and passed guys up with his work ethic,'' Washburn first-year head coach Zach Watkins said. "He's what our 'Be The Standard' culture is all about because he sets a high standard in everything he does.
"At this level you've got guys who are 6-2 and you've got guys who are 6-7, but when you've got guys that work hard and do everything right and are a great teammate and student, you're eventually going to be on the field doing something.''
Busenitz said that despite challenges along the way he's very proud of what he's been able to accomplish at Washburn.
"The COVID year kind of messed everything up and I'm a little bit undersized, so I had to go the walk-on route,'' said Busenitz, who played in the Kansas Shrine Bowl after his senior season for the T-Birds. "This is always where I wanted to be. It was always a good, successful program and I'm just kind of a homebody.
"My philosophy, even in middle school and high school, has always been just to try and out-work everybody else and eventually good things will happen.''
After redshirting as a true freshman, Busenitz suffered a setback his second season when he broke his hand during fall camp. Busenitz fought back to earn some special team work later in the season before cracking the Ichabods' starting lineup last fall.
"That second year, with the hand and some life stuff, it all kind of got pretty tough and it was all starting to pile up a little bit, but hey, the hungry dogs, they run faster, so it just pushed me even further,'' Busenitz said.
"That third year I got my shot and was a starter and am hoping to keep that spot.''
JC Heim already a veteran for Ichabod defense as a sophomore
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
JC Heim probably could have benefitted in some areas from redshirting his freshman football season at Washburn University last fall.
Former Washburn Rural star JC Heim is already a veteran for the Washburn University defense after seeing extensive action last fall as a true freshman. [File photo/TSN]
But the Ichabods benefitted a lot more from having the 6-foot-3, 225-pound sophomore inside linebacker on the field.
"Last year he was just too good not to play and we had a big need where he was playing,'' said first-year Washburn head coach Zach Watkins, who was Heim's defensive coordinator last fall. "Now, with a full year of college under his belt and a full summer of development and our new coaching staff getting him in the right position, he's been exactly what we want with our culture and the standard of his position on defense for this team.''
The former Washburn Rural star admitted that he had some self doubt when he first took the field for the Ichabods.
"At first it was tough,'' Heim said. "Personally, I didn't think I was ready even though the coaches and the players around me believed in me for sure. The biggest part is you've got to believe in yourself.
"As I started getting out there, the guys around me, that's what we made me better. That's what made me get this experience. That's what made me get better each day in practice where by the end of the year I was doing a lot better than I did in the first game.''
Heim saw action in all 11 games for the 3-8 Ichabods last season with a pair of starts, finishing the year with 29 tackles (13 solo), two forced fumbles, a 58-yard fumble return and a season-high 10 stops against Central Missouri.
