Wossman's Ladarrius Thomas commits to Tech

Louisiana Tech continued its stockpile in the backfield with Saturday's verbal commitment from Wossman running back Ladarrius Thomas.

Thomas was at Tech's spring game Saturday and gave his pledge to the Bulldogs' coaching staff.

"The coaches were jumping up and down. Coach (Skip) Holtz was surprised because he thought I'd go to an SEC school," Thomas told The News-Star on Saturday night. "They're a program on the rise, they're getting new facilities and all that and I get a chance to play."

Thomas said he had offers from Arkansas, the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and Southern and was also receiving interest from TCU, Ole Miss and Tennessee.

The 6-foot-2, 220-pound power back said his commitment to Tech is firm.

"I'm all Louisiana Tech. Once I made a commitment to them, my mom told me if I'm going to make a commitment I gotta stay with it and I can't go visit anymore colleges. That's what my mom told me, she's not taking me on any more visits because this is really what I wanted to do."

At the time he committed, Thomas became the second member of Tech's 2016 class. By Saturday night that number moved to three with the commitment of Starkville, Mississippi defensive end Lorenzo Dantzler.

Thomas is most known in the area for his standout performance in 2014 against rival Carroll when he rushed for 329 yards.

Now he'll have a chance to do it on a larger stage only 30 minutes from his house.

With Tech senior running back Kenneth Dixon departing after the 2015 season, the Bulldogs continue to bring in new running backs.

In 2014, Tech signed Tywun Walters and Jarred Craft, who ran for 75 yards and two touchdowns Saturday. In the most recent class, Tech signed three-star prospect Jaqwis Dancy out of Arkansas.

By the time Thomas makes it to campus, Craft will be a junior, Walters a redshirt sophomore and Dancy either a redshirt freshman or sophomore.

"It's very exciting. Kenneth Dixon, when I first got there, he gave me some of his tips on what to do, how to run better, when to get down, when to stay up," Thomas said. "The players around them, they made me feel at home and welcomed as a family when I wasn't even part of the family. That brought me in even more."