Following an 0-10 season last year, the enthusiasm and expectations that the first year head coach has brought to the campus and community has been contagious.  "We want to get the perception of this program back to the standards we need to be at. We will put forth a good effort on the field and find ways to win games," said Thomas when asked about his expectations for the year.  "I think we have enough talent here to win, and it is a process to get to that point after you've been down a couple of years, but we're expecting to come in and compete well right away," he added.

Already the Tigers have received some attention on the national scene by garnering a vote towards a Top 25 Ranking in the NAIA Pre-season Ratings. "I think we had a great recruiting class and that goes a long way with people who know football plus we have some key players coming back and I think most people believe we will be improved this year," said Thomas. "Our biggest problem will be depth at some positions," admitted Thomas.

One of those key players who could make a huge impact this season is senior Running Back Greg Fountain. Fountain, from Owensboro, Kentucky, will likely break many of the Tiger Football career rushing records this season. He currently ranks second on the all-time rushing yards list with 2,703 yards, just 218 yards behind career leader Tim Mays. Fountain ranks third in rushing attempts, third in rushing touchdowns and already owns the career record for rushing yards per game. "Greg will likely go out this year by breaking several records and one thing this year that will make him even better are good players like Detrick Briggs (5'10/170/SO/Louisville, KY) along with a couple of freshmen that will be on his heels every day in practice," said Thomas.

Defensively, John McCann (6'1/285/SR/Nicholasville, KY) will be the team leader. "John is the hub of our defense on that Defensive Line and all of the players look up to him. I think he will be a big key to us defensively this season," said Thomas.

The coach added that Russell Parker (5'11/170/WR/Bowling Green,KY) and Sean Thompson (6'3/214 WR/Marion, KY) could be poised for breakthrough years and that another player to keep an eye on is Karl Charles (6'0/180/CB/Belle Glade, Florida).

Among the 97 newcomers signed by the first year coaching staff, Thomas says that Stan Warren-Huffman (6'3/190/WR/Cincinnati,OH) is a player to watch. "He's a gazelle and I think we can expect big things out of him the next four years," added Thomas. The coach also sang the pre-season praises of freshman Wide Receiver Demetric Ray of Bowling Green, Kentucky, Henri Baker-Baynham (5'9/260/DT/Elizabethtown, KY) and Will Danks a Strong Safety from Beaver Dam, Kentucky. "We actually think Danks could have played NCAA Division I football but got lost in the shuffle down in Ohio County so we believe we got a real steal with him," said Thomas.

Although depth at some positions may pose a problem for Campbellsville this season, it appears the Tigers have a solid stable of Quarterbacks.  Blake Lawyer (JR/6'4/200/Elnora, IN) appears to the early contender for the starting spot, but as of press time Thomas said that Ross Deaton (6'2/220/Somerset, KY) and a couple of other players are pushing for the spot. "We have a number of quarterbacks that are all able to do different things so it could make us very versatile," said Thomas.

Campbellsville will use a basic 3-5 defense most of the time this season but Thomas says that mixed into the overall defensive scheme will be some man pressure and six man pressure. "We're a little thin on Defense right now and that's something we'll have to continue to shore up in our recruiting classes so that is a bit of a concern but that doesn't mean we won't be prepared for every game," stated Thomas.

On the offensive side of the ball Thomas said Tiger fans can expect a little bit of everything.  "You'll see some great fireworks offensively. We'll primarily use a one back set, but we'll throw in a two back and no back set as well," he said. "You are going to see us run the football and pound it up in there but we'll also spread it out and throw screen passes and balls down the field," he added. "We're going to be very good offensively and I think we'll sputter sometimes, but we will be able to score points," he concluded.

A daunting schedule that features six teams ranked in the pre-season Top 30 will test the Tigers early and often. The season opener at home with Cumberland University, a team that received 21 votes in the Top 25 ranking, will be followed by a home date on September 13th with 5th ranked Ohio Dominican. Throw in ranked teams in UVA-Wise, Georgetown, Cumberlands and Shorter who received 6 votes and the schedule is loaded. Add to the mix back to back road games at Lambuth and West Virginia Tech and there is little doubt the Campbellsville schedule is one of the nation's toughest.

Despite coming off of a less than perfect season a year ago, several new players and a new coaching staff, Thomas said that his team feels it can contend for the National Championship. "The ultimate goal is the National Championship. I don't care what the talent level is or what the injury level is or those sorts of things, but to win the National Championship you have to play above your heads sometimes and shoot for the best. When you do that, you have a chance to win. Our guys believe they can do that. They feel like they've let the community down the last few years and they want to come in and make a good showing, gain some respect and lay the foundation for this program to develop again," concluded Thomas.