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Show Sidelines Text: Mike Coe HARD WORKER Rob Thomas goes up for a shot against Idaho State in this year's Big Sky action. This sports section is dedicated to his memory. (Signpost photo: Scott Miller) w--fr lT LJV .A . a V In memory of Text: Chris J. Miller w e all recently lost a good friend in Rob Thomas. He came to epitomize what it means to be a student athlete. The Sports section of SignOff is dedicated to his memory. Thomas lost his life in a motorcycle accident at Jericho in the Little Sahara State Park on May 24. He was scheduled to leave on an LDS mission the following Thursday. He was 22 years old. Thomas was co-captain of this year's Wildcat basketball team, possibly an odd accomplishment for a player who played only 10 minutes a game. But anyone who knew Rob knew why he had been chosen as captain. "He was one of those players that is on every team," said Weber State athletic director Gary Crompton. "Rob came off the bench and played 100 percent, and he gave 100 percent in practice. He was the epitome of hard work." Although he was known as a very aggressive defender, Thomas' personality off the court was anything but hard. "He was pleasant and easy going," said Crompton. A native of Roy, Utah, Thomas grew up watching and idolizing Weber State basketball. When Rob signed to play for Weber, he told assistant coach Dick Hunsaker that "his dream had come true." Thomas starred at Roy High School and Snow Junior College before coming to Weber. But at Weber, his playing time was limited to coming off the bench. It was perhaps there that Thomas showed his true athletic spirit. Despite averaging under 10 minutes playing time this past year, he contributed all he had. "He always gave his best in everything he attempted. He showed excellent leadership," said Hunsaker. Following this year's Big Sky Championship tournament in Reno, Thomas, who could not play because of a foot injury, took the opportunity to credit his coach and his team for all the. accomplishments and successes they had been through during the year. "It's been great playing for Coach Farmer and Weber State. They're the greatest." It has been a good year for Weber State sports this athletic season. While some sports may not have had the best of seasons, these lows were offset by the successes of other Wildcat teams. In fact, Weber had such a good year athletically, that they came within half a point of winning the Big Sky All-Sports trophy given to the school which compiles the most total points in the various sports. During the year, many school and conference records were broken by the current crop of Wildcat athletes. One of the most impressive records was set by tennis player Anna Gunnarsson. Gunnarsson became the first Weber State tennis player, either male or female, to ever go the complete season without a loss. Gunnarsson complied a record of 22-0 for the season. In the record breaking department, football was the torch bearer. The football team broke 26 school records, numerous Big Sky records, and even one National Division II record. Enjoying almost as much success in breaking records was the women's outdoor track team. They ended up breaking nine school records. Though a Weber team wasn't directly involved, the Weber State campus played host to the eventual NCAA basketball champions in the mid-West regionals of the NCAA tournament. The Louisville Cardinals, along with perennial powerhouse North Carolina, Bradley, UTEP, UAB, Drexell, Utah and Missouri were the teams involved. Louisville and North Carolina advanced to Houston where Louisville defeated the Tar Heels. Louisville would go on to defeat everyone they played, including the Duke Blue Devils in the championship game. In a broader sense, it was a good year for sports not associated with Weber or on a different level from the Wildcats. It also seemed the year of the underdog. Kansas City was the decided underdog in the Interstate 70 World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals. And, when the Royals were down 3-1 in the series, it seemed the odd makers were right. But, with plenty of guts and determination, along with a blown call in game six and nervous breakdown by the Cardinals in game seven, the Royals where able to prevail. But, nothing could help the underdog New England Patriots in the Super Bowl against the Chicago Bears. The Bears, with cult heros William "The Refrigerator" Perry and Jim McMahon doing their thing, and the best defense to ever grace the football field, simply destroyed the Patriots 46-10 in the 20th edition of the Super Bowl. Currently, another overwhelming underdog is trying to make a bid for a championship in one of America's three major sports. That team is the Houston Rockets. The Rockets knocked off the defending champion Lakers and are now taking on the Boston Celtics. Though the athletic season has been good, it ended in tragedy. Wildcat basketball player and co-captain Rob Thomas was recently killed in a motorcycle accident in Jericho. Hopefully, the spirit and determination Thomas showed on the court will carry on through all of Weber's athletics despite Thomas' absence. |