Beyond the Orange: Star Thomas

One of the pleasant surprises for Tennessee in 2025 has been transfer running back Star Thomas. He goes Beyond the Orange sponsored by Knoxville Smiles to detail the transition.

“Just the coaches, the whole coaching staff I felt like soon after I got here from the day I got to the airport to the day that I came and got to the facility I felt family oriented here,” Thomas said. “My mom and my brother felt the same way from the other schools that I went to, you could just feel the family vibe from Tennessee, coach Heup, coach Sims. They laid it all out to me. It wasn’t going to be my show. You are going to have to get here and work but we want you here and need you here. We need a leader in that room, an older guy in that room. Two things coach Heupel told me from the first day, your pad level and your run blocking and I was like this is where I need to be. Coaches always tell you what you want to hear and not what you need to hear. When he said that I text my mom and said I think I’m going to come here.”

Star finds people he can trust

He jived with Josh Heupel but more importantly his position coach, De’Rail Sims.

“I could just tell he was very authentic from the day I met him,” Thomas said. “It wasn’t no sugarcoating. If he wanted to tell me something, he was telling me. He wasn’t beating around the bush or anything. With coaches like that, you don’t get that everywhere. That’s how my last coach was at Duke. They were real coaches.”

Thomas has been a tremendous asset on and off the field for the Vols as they reach the month of October.

Watch the full episode of Beyond the Orange below.