Get to know your Orange man: No. 23, LB Jonathan Thomas

Name: Jonathan Thomas

Position: Linebacker

Year: Junior

Height: 6-1

Weight: 209 lbs.

Hometown: Lawrenceville, Ga.

High School: Collins Hill

2015 Stats: Thomas spent the season backing up Parris Bennett at strong-side linebacker, playing in all 12 games and accumulating 34 tackles including 1.5 for loss.

2016 Projections: With the new coaching staff moving incumbent starter Parris Bennett to weak-side linebacker, Thomas will take over the starting role on the strong-side. Having accumulated such a high volume of tackles in 2015 serving as a backup, there is no reason he shouldn’t be an effective defensive player this coming season.

How’d He Get Here: Thomas chose Syracuse over schools like Oklahoma, Indiana and Cincinnati.

What’d The Recruiting Sites Say?: Thomas was rated as a three-star recruit by all four major recruiting services (ESPN, Rivals, Scout, 247Sports).

Money Quote: On choosing Syracuse...

"That was the best place for me and my situation because they never gave up on me."

Links of Wonder: Seems like Thomas is a fan of Fetty Wap:

Twitter Feed: @jonny_suave1

Tweets of Wonder: Looks like Thomas has trust issues with birds:

What’d The Coaching Staff Say: It’s not from any of the staff directly, but team captain LB Zaire Franklin had this to say about Thomas to Stephen Bailey of Syracuse.com:

“The biggest growth I've seen from JT is mentally," Franklin said. "I think the way he approaches the game, the way he prepares for the game, just his overall understanding of where he needs to be, is at a whole different level than anything since I've been here."

Interesting Nugget O' Interest: Thomas didn’t start playing football until his junior year of high school.

Let’s Get A Good Look Atcha: