After re-writing school record books, Christian Heritage’s Locke, Thomas sign to play college football

Published 3:00 pm Thursday, February 3, 2022

Solomon Locke and Christian Thomas may be leaving Christian Heritage School to play college football, but their marks on the program will still be present in the record books.

The duo of seniors signed Wednesday in a ceremony at the school — Locke with the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and Thomas with Berry College — after setting records at Christian Heritage.

Thomas has the school record in “basically any quarterback stat,” said Christian Heritage head coach Jay Poag. Locke, a two-way standout, is the school’s record-holder in tackles as well as rushing yards in a game and career.

Locke joins the Division I Football Championship Subdivision program at UTC, just a 30-minute drive up I-75 from Dalton, while Thomas is bound for Division III Berry, which is about an hour from Dalton in Mount Berry, near Rome.

“They’re close enough that we can go and watch them play on Saturdays,” Poag said.

Locke, who joined the Mocs over offers from Division I FCS Stetson and a few smaller schools, said proximity to home was a deciding factor between UTC and Stetson, which is in DeLand, Florida.

“I’m very excited. Campus is amazing and the coaches are great,” said Locke, who got an offer from UTC just on Jan. 24. I liked Stetson too, but (UTC) is closer to home. I can come home and watch my brother (rising Christian Heritage junior Jeffson Locke) play. Overall, it was just a better choice and a better opportunity for me.”

Locke becomes the second player in Christian Heritage history to sign with a Division I school. Evan Lester signed with Georgia Southern last year.

Locke projects as a running back at UTC, but Poag said that could change when he gets to campus.

“They’re so excited to get him,” Poag said. “They’re going to start him out in the running back room, but the defensive coaches want him, too.”

“I just want to play. I love football,” Locke said. “If playing defense gets me on the field, I’ll do that, and if it’s offense, I’ll play offense. Whatever the team needs me to do.”

Thomas is a long-time quarterback — he started taking private quarterback lessons from Poag in 2013 before Poag took over as Christian Heritage’s coach — but could also play in the defensive backfield at Berry.

“They don’t talk about the way he throws it or runs it, they talk about him as a winner. I think that’s what Berry saw in him,” Poag said. “They may have a quarterback, but what they call it is a football player. They’ll figure all that out when he gets to campus.”

Thomas said he will play wherever the Berry coaches want to put him, but he believes he can compete at quarterback.

“I want to play my role,” Thomas said. “I’m a team player. If they want me on defense, I’ll play defense. But, I have full confidence in myself, and I want to play my position.”

Berry was another late offer for Thomas — he picked up on Jan. 13.

“I had a few Division II offers and a few places that wanted me to walk on,” Thomas said. “I love the facilities and it’s only an hour away.”

Thomas credits his quarterbacks coach at Christian Heritage, Brandon Poag, with piquing his interest in the college. Poag, the son of Jay Poag and a 2017 Christian Heritage graduate, played quarterback at Berry.

“He would tell me about it,” Thomas said. “I was waiting to see if they would offer me.”