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 Wednesday, November 21, 2001
Mr. Thompson's Neighborhood
By Todd Harris
Special to ABC Sports Online
NFL scouts in search of filling the safety position need look no further than the West Coast. The Pac-10 is loaded with talent at that position right now.
At the top of the list and making most opposing quarterbacks lose sleep is Washington State's senior free safety, Lamont Thompson. Whichever team picks him to play on Sundays will be glad they did. Aside from being a Jim Thorpe Award Semifinalist (the Heisman Trophy for defensive backs), he is on pace to hold every Pac-10 record for interceptions. He has never had fewer than four interceptions in a season during his time in Pullman, and two weeks ago against UCLA, he had four picks in one game.
|  | | Washington State's Lamont Thompson leads the nation with eight interceptions and the Cougars with 74 tackles. |
Is he the real deal? Absolutely.
This is actually his fifth year at Washington State, after he sat out all of last year recovering from a neck injury. Obviously there have been no lingering effects from the year off, as he currently leads the nation with eight picks, and last week, with his interception of Arizona State's Jeff Krohn, set the Pac-10 career INT record (22).
There are other quality safeties in the league, such as fellow Thorpe semifinalist Marques Anderson of UCLA, USC's Troy Polamalu, Stanford's Tank Williams, Washington's Greg Carothers and Oregon's Rasuli Webster. They too will more than likely be playing on Sundays once their college days are done.
But heading into this weekend's pivotal matchup with in-state rival Washington (ABC, 3:30 p.m. ET), no safety is as big of a force for his team than Thompson. Going into hostile Husky Stadium is no time for the inexperienced, which is why coach Mike Price will rest easy with Thompson roaming the secondary.
Why? Because Lamont has a stellar history against the Huskies. As a freshman, Thompson had six interceptions on the year, but three of them came in the final game against the Huskies. Not a bad way to cap the season.
So if you're the Washington Huskies, do you venture into Lamont's territory or do you keep it close to the artificial terra firma and do it by ground? Coach Rick Neuheisel has never shied away from a challenge. It will most likely come down to a situation similar to a kicker steering the kickoff clear of a dangerous return man. Washington will throw and throw often. However, don't be surprised if the Huskies stay clear of Mr. Thompson's neighborhood and opt for the "Do Not Disturb" plan instead.
Either way, this year's Apple Cup is bound to be a great game with major bowl implications, not to mention the 360-plus days of bragging rights the winner is entitled to.
Here are my guarantees for Saturday: It will probably rain, someone will leave the field with a sour taste in their mouth for a whole year, and, more than likely, Lamont Thompson is bound to steal something -- the show, the ball, or both.
Todd Harris spotlights the Pac-10 each week for ABC Sports Online. He will be on the sidelines for Saturday's Washington State-Washington game on ABC with Keith Jackson and Tim Brant.
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 AllNight: Washington State safety Lamont Thompson previews this week's Apple Cup game.
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