Louisiana has constantly produced some of the top talent in the nation year in and year out. Southern Lab’s Class of 2024 Running Back Douglas Thornton is another name to add to that list. The incredibly agile back rushed for nearly 1500 yards on 128 carries. Couple that with his 16 touchdowns, the young back averaged 11.5 yards per carry AND A TOUCHDOWN EVERY EIGHT CARRIES. Eye-popping numbers!
Watching him play, you’d never believe Thornton was listed at 5’5 and 157lbs. Not only can he make defenders miss, but in a tight squeeze, can lower the boom on linebackers and safeties coming full speed with bad intentions.
I caught up with Douglas after a recent 7 on 7 tryout with the Randall Passing Academy. Thornton blew me away with his maturity, and calmness in his answers. “I wanted to come out here and get some work in” said Thornton. “I wanted to line up against people that are older than me. To see what I need to work on.”
Thornton knows that he has a lot of work to do, he was spotlighted by Marcus Randall as one of the top performing sophomores at the 7 on 7 tryout. When asked about that Thornton responded “I look to be not one of, but the top sophomore coming out of this class, I constantly stay working and improving that’s all.”
Heading into his junior year the young back wants to increase his role with the Kittens, and you can already see the seeds of leadership being sown from this quote. “I hope to improve all around” said Thornton. “More carries, yards, touchdowns, yards after catch, receiving touchdowns. We need some of the younger guys to step up too, we need everybody we can get.”
Look for Thornton to continue to improve his speed and grow in the weight room during the off-season. “I’m trying to improve my weight” says Thornton. “I’m trying to improve my balance, I had a couple of slips this year. I want to improve my top end speed. I did get caught a couple times this year. I think if I get those, I’ll be alright.”
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