After a grueling 48-46 victory over Arlington Catholic Tuesday night in the Eastern Mass. Division 3 semifinals, many of the Whittier football players elected to sleep in yesterday morning, then go out to a relaxing breakfast.
But not Thane Sanford. When the bell rang for first period to begin at Whittier Tech, the senior running back/linebacker was comfortably sitting at his desk.
What can you expect from a student who ranks 12th in his class of 270 and has not missed a day of school since kindergarten?
"Today was a tough day to get myself to school," said Sanford, whose attendance streak is now well over 2,000 days. "But it started in the first grade when I didn't miss a day of school and they gave me a certificate. I thought that was pretty cool so I kept going and I learned you can get small scholarships for attendance. The guys make fun of me sometimes, but so what."
Many of his teammates may not understand his methods, but judging by his performance both on the football field and in the classroom, it's hard to question Sanford's strategies.
"I want to be the best out there," said the Haverhill resident. "I'm pretty competitive. There are always a few kids getting the same grades (as me) and I'm always competing with them. And in football I'm always competing with (all-star running back) Jay (Pena)."
But not Thane Sanford. When the bell rang for first period to begin at Whittier Tech, the senior running back/linebacker was comfortably sitting at his desk.
What can you expect from a student who ranks 12th in his class of 270 and has not missed a day of school since kindergarten?
"Today was a tough day to get myself to school," said Sanford, whose attendance streak is now well over 2,000 days. "But it started in the first grade when I didn't miss a day of school and they gave me a certificate. I thought that was pretty cool so I kept going and I learned you can get small scholarships for attendance. The guys make fun of me sometimes, but so what."
Many of his teammates may not understand his methods, but judging by his performance both on the football field and in the classroom, it's hard to question Sanford's strategies.
"I want to be the best out there," said the Haverhill resident. "I'm pretty competitive. There are always a few kids getting the same grades (as me) and I'm always competing with them. And in football I'm always competing with (all-star running back) Jay (Pena)."
After a broken ankle suffered during baseball season kept him out of all but the final three games in 2005, the 6-foot-4, 190-pounder has exploded onto the scene this season for the Wildcats, who will face Medfield for the Division 3 Super Bowl crown on Saturday.
The senior has rushed for 920 yards on 84 carries, scored 13 touchdowns and caught eight passes for 137 yards this fall. He has also been one of the defensive catalysts for the Wildcats from his outside linebacker position.
"I never expected to stand out the way I have," said Sanford, who sees his tall frame as an advantage. "I didn't know how many rushing yards I had until about a week ago and I saw I had over 800 and I was just shocked."
The only player in our 20-school region to have a higher yards-per-carry average than Sanford's 11.0 average is Pena.
He has also been at his best in the biggest games. Against archrival Tyngsboro, a team Whittier had lost to six straight times, Sanford exploded for 191 yards on 23 carries. And in the game that clinched the Commonwealth Conference Large title, a victory over Greater Lowell, Sanford had a stunning 155 yards on only seven carries.
He was also a standout on the baseball diamond in the spring, batting .350 with 14 RBIs for the 18-5 Commonwealth Conference Large champion Wildcats.
But athletics far from the only venue in which the soft-spoken 17-year-old has excelled.
"I know I need a great education to get a good job and I want to go to college so I can get a job that I enjoy," he said. "I don't stand for anything lower than a B. I used to get very depressed if I got a B-minus."
As proficient as Sanford has been on the football field, he has been just as accomplished academically.
He recently scored a 590 on the math, a 580 on the English and a 500 on the essay portion of his SATs.
"Math is what I'm best at," said Sanford, who elected to attend Whittier over Haverhill High after an impressive visit. "I don't know how I do it, I can just figure things out that others can't like stats and averages. It's funny, we makes jokes about it."
And he has been able to bring that intelligence to the football field.
"You just have to tell Thane something once and he knows it," said Whittier coach Kevin Bradley. "He does his proper checks (on defense), he knows where he has to be and he has the knowledge to direct other people, too."
Sanford has yet to select a college, but several schools are recruiting him.
"I'm looking for a college that allows me to play football and major in either video game design or animation," he explained. "I love video games and want to work with them, but I also want to play football."
Doctors told him to quit
There was a time when Sanford thought he would never return to the football field.
"It was one of the last games of my sophomore season in JV baseball and I slid into home. The catcher closed his legs and I must have caught my leg the wrong way and it just snapped," he remembered. "The Shawsheen trainer thought it was only bruised but I looked at it and said, 'Are you sure it's bruised, because it looks pretty broken.'"
Sanford was right; his left ankle was broken. Once he learned of the diagnosis he inquired when he could get back onto the gridiron, and was not thrilled with the response.
"The doctor told me I should just quit (football)," he recalled. "But I thought to myself, 'Forget that.' There was no way I wasn't going to play football again."
Once the cast came off at the end of the summer, Sanford began training with the Whittier staff and trainer, making it back for the final three games of the 2005 season. He even rushed for a touchdown against Greater Lowell.
"When you look up the word 'dedicated' in the dictionary, you see Thane Sanford's picture," said Bradley. "He proved the doctors wrong and they were just amazed."
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