Those who take football recruiting visits to the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs can be awe-struck seeing the beauty of the 18,000-acre campus at the foot of the Rocky Mountains.
Orlando Christian Prep transfer Thomas Young tried to push the gorgeous backdrop out of his mind during his visit to the Air Force campus, but it wasn’t easy.
Ultimately, it didn’t matter. Everything else about Air Force checked off all he was looking for and he committed last weekend.
“It’s very beautiful. Trees and mountains as far as you can see. It’s gorgeous,” Young said. “So that was definitely one of the factors, but the biggest things were the coaches. The head coach, Coach [Troy] Callahan and my (position) coach, Coach [Nick] Toth.”
“Sometimes coaches tell you only the best things about the school, but he told me the real truth, and he brought in players who could vouch for him. I could see that he is a very honest man that I would really enjoy playing for.”
The other thought that goes into choosing a service academy is the commitment being made to service, not just football. Young also took that into heavy consideration.
”It’s a really big thing to consider and obviously going to a military academy, there’s the five-year service after you’re done,” Young said. “But you have to take a look at it from a positive standpoint that it’s a five-year guaranteed employment, with some very good pay and some very good benefits.
“Also, you get to serve your country, as well, which I’m all for.”
Young, who is 6-foot, 180 pounds and No. 52 on the Sentinel’s 2025 Central Florida Super60 , came to OCP from Lake Nona, where he had 36 tackles and 1 interception last year. OCP coach Guershom Demosthenes is happy to have the new defensive back on board. He will play corner and safety, as well as receiver or running back on offense.
“Tommy is a great kid. A really good, humble young man. He works hard,” Demosthenes said. “We’re really blessed to have him. He’s going to contribute early for us in the secondary.”
Young said he is not concerned about keeping his promise to Air Force.
”I’m a man of my word,” he said. “Wherever I say I’m going, that’s where I’m going.”
Chris Hays can be found on X at OS_ChaysHays . He can be reached via email at chays@orlandosentinel.com .
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