High school football: Amherst picks Tom Thome, who turned around Lakewood, as next coach

Tom Thome took over a Lakewood football program that had won only two games in three seasons and led them to their first playoff appearance in 18 seasons. Now he'll have the chance to lead the same kind of turnaround at Amherst. Thome, a 2002 Nordonia grad, was introduced Tuesday as the Comets next coach pending board approval. He replaces Kenny Fritz, who went 0-20 in two seasons at Amherst. "What really drew me to Amherst is the community," Thome said. "It's rich in tradition in athletics., especially in football. It's a community that gravitates to supporting its student-athletes. It's someplace I thought would be a very good fit for me and my family." Thome had a chance to met his new team Tuesday, the final day of classes before Amherst's winter break. "I was excited by what I saw," he said. "The numbers were great. The kids were locked in. There was nobody on their phone or with earbuds in, you could tell they're hungry and ready to get to work. Each kid shook my hand and looked me in the eye. I told the kids, 'I'm going to challenge you and on Jan. 3 we're going to get to work.'" He'll have a tough task in front of him trying to revive a Comets program that has made only one playoff appearance since 2008, and that was in the COVID-shortened 2020 season when every team made it. "I need to get these kids to understand everything is about us," Thome said. "Every day is about Amherst, we're not competing against anybody else but ourselves. Once kids understand that and understand it's not about the past and it's not about social media. They can focus on getting better every day. If you get better every day good things will happen." Before going to Lakewood, where he went 13-38 in five seasons, Thome was an assistant at Twinsburg, Stow-Munroe Falls and Lucas. He was the defensive coordinator on the Stow-Monroe Falls 2015 Division I state semifinal team. "We had a number of people apply for the position but throughout the process Tom was the leading candidate," Amherst athletic director Casey Wolf said. "It's clear he has strong passion for football and he's had success at Lakewood, which is a place a lot of people haven't had success at. "They were in the SWC his first two years at Lakewood," Wolf added. "I remember the second time we played them and they were such a different team from Year 1 to Year 2. That's a testament to who he is as a coach and how hard he works." After getting a taste of SWC football, Thome is excited for another chance to coach in the league. "The Friday nights in the Southwestern Conference and in the Suburban League (the league he coached in at Twinsburg and Stow) are really incredible," Thome said. "As a guy who loves those Friday Night Lights, that's what drew me back." Thome said he is excited to use the time over the holidays to watch film and learn more about his players. However, he's more interested in who they are as people not just as football players. "We don't focus on football," he said. "We focus on giving these high school athletes the best experience and helping them become the best people they can be. Name an athletic program that wins without high-character kids, it doesn't happen." "Wins and losses are great. I was on the state runner-up team in Nordonia in 2002. Don't get me wrong, every coach wants to win but it's more about giving kids a genuine high school experience. It's about giving them a chance to be competitive week in and week out." Contact Todd Shapiro at (440) 329-7135 or ctpsorts@chroniclet.com.