ESPN RISE

Beaver Falls (Pa.) senior Todd Thomas says there's a good chance he'll go out for the Tigers' baseball team this spring. He'd also like to take up golf at some point.

[+] Enlarge

Jeff Swensen for ESPNRise.com

Todd Thomas is an all-state selection in both football and basketball.

Though Thomas hasn't played baseball since middle school and has yet to pick up a set of clubs, it wouldn't be at all surprising if he were successful in both sports.

That's because Thomas is already considered one of Pennsylvania's top all-around athletes thanks to his exploits as a football and basketball player.

"He can do anything he puts his mind to," Beaver Falls football coach Ryan Matsook says. "When you've got talent like that, geez, I wish I could walk a day in his shoes. He's a specimen to say the least."

Rated the nation's No. 27 football athlete in the ESPNU 150, Thomas stars on the gridiron at wide receiver, running back and linebacker and has committed to Pitt for the sport. On the basketball court, the 6-foot-3, 190-pound guard has been a starter since his freshman season. And he's an All-State performer in both sports.

Thomas' mother, Jodie, first saw signs of her son's athletic potential at age 3 when he caught an object falling off a shelf at home. He began playing organized sports a couple years later and excelled in whatever he took up. Thomas showed so much promise on the diamond early on that his mother thought it would eventually be his best sport.

Yet Thomas gave up baseball in seventh grade so he could concentrate on football and hoops.

It turned out to be a wise decision, especially considering his nagging fear of getting hit by a pitch when he was at the plate. Now, Thomas is the one striking fear into opponents.

Beaver Falls boys' basketball coach Doug Biega came to the realization Thomas could eventually be a special player for the Tigers when he saw Thomas playing as an eighth-grader. It wasn't so much Thomas' stunning athleticism that wowed Biega. It was more the tenacity he showed on every possession.

Biega was so impressed by Thomas he inserted him into the starting lineup during his freshman season and gave him the responsibility of being the team's defensive stopper. Thomas embraced the challenge even though it often meant taking on players much older and larger. It wasn't glamorous, but it helped the team win.

"He doesn't back down to anyone," Biega says. "He has every skill and athletic tool to be a top-level defender. I've never seen a kid compete as hard as he does every night. When you're a marquee player, you're going to get everyone's best. He doesn't want anyone to say they beat him."

"He's one of those people, even as a little boy, who wouldn't take second best," adds Thomas' mother.

Thomas averaged 15 points, eight rebounds and two assists per game as a freshman to help the Tigers advance to the PIAA Class AA state finals, where they fell to Prep Charter.

[+] Enlarge

Jeff Swensen for ESPNRise.com

Playing running back and wide receiver, Thomas has committed to the University of Pittsburgh.

His arrival as a football star came a year later when Matsook took over as head coach. Thomas earned a starting spot and never looked back. He ran for 630 yards, caught 29 passes for 486 yards, intercepted six passes and scored 10 total touchdowns to pick up All-State honors.

He also added an All-State basketball selection as a sophomore after averaging 21.1 points, seven rebounds and four assists per game to lead Beaver Falls to the WPIAL Class AA semifinals and the PIAA Class AA state quarterfinals.

Throughout his stellar career, Thomas has sprinkled in numerous jaw-dropping plays as well. During a football game against Center last year, Thomas took a simple running play and cut it up the sideline, where one of Center's safeties wrapped him up. With the ball in his right hand, Thomas tossed the defender off him with his left arm and rumbled for 15 more yards.

On the basketball court last season, he blocked a dunk attempt by Aliquippa All-State baller Jonathan Baldwin, who is now a wide receiver at Pitt.

"He's not a finesse player," Matsook says. "He goes 100 miles per hour. He's just an animal."

But Thomas also realizes all his highlights, accolades and press clippings wouldn't have been possible without the sacrifices his mother made for him while he was growing up.

"My mom is like my lifeline," Thomas says. "She means everything to me."

Staying close to his mom - as well as the rest of his family, friends and coaches -- played a major role in his commitment to Pitt over schools like Michigan, West Virginia and Penn State.

One thing he'll be leaving behind, however, is basketball, which he has decided he won't continue playing after high school. Though it was a tough decision, it became more and more obvious as he thought about his future prospects in both sports.

"There's a lot of 6-3 guards, but there's not a lot of 6-3 wideouts," says Thomas, who expects to play wide receiver at Pitt. "It's an easier road. There's no chance I'm going to play hoop."

Thomas' last hurrah as a basketball player will come this winter, and he plans on doing anything possible to help Beaver Falls achieve both WPIAL and PIAA crowns before putting away his basketball kicks for good.

"I want to be remembered as a legend in football and basketball," Thomas says.

Before the school year is done, he might be able to add baseball to that list as well.

Jon Mahoney covers high school sports for ESPN RISE.