Thaddaeus Washington

Houston

Sep 12 (Fri)

5:30 PM

Position:
Inside Linebacker
Height:
5-11
Weight:
245
Class:
Senior
Hometown:
Marrero, La.
High School:
John Ehret

AT COLORADO?Career Notes: He finished eight on CU’s all-time tackles list with 338, ranking 10th in solo tackles (202) and 21st in tackles for loss (26).

2006 (Sr.)?He played in all 12 games at inside linebacker (mike), starting eight as he earned honorable mention All-Big 12 Conference honors from both the league coaches and the Associated Press (he was a second-team choice by both the Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Express-News). He was the recipient of the Tiger Bussey Award as selected by his teammates (perseverance over adversity) and the Buffalo Heart Award as selected by the fans. He earned second-team All-Colorado honors from the Colorado Chapter of the National Football Foundation, and was invited to play in the Hula Bowl (he did not play due to injury). He was also selected to Mark May’s (ESPN) All-May Day team, which recognizes the toughest competitors by position; he earned the nod when he returned to the lineup later in the game after suffered two fractured front teeth in the first quarter against Kansas State. He finished second on the team in tackles with 107, with 60 solo and seven for losses (including half a quarterback sack); he was in on a tackle every 4.1 plays, a team-best for the regulars as he saw 444 snaps from scrimmage. He had a career-high 19 tackles in a 24-3 loss at Oklahoma, with 12 solo and a school record four third down stops against the Sooners. He opened the year with three straight double figure tackle games (11 vs. Montana State, 12 vs. Colorado State, 15 vs. Arizona State) and also had 11 in his career finale at Nebraska (with three third down stops and a fumble recovery) and 10 at Kansas. He had one interception on the season (against Texas Tech), and accumulated four special team points on the strength of two tackles, one inside-the-20, and a forced fumble. He also fielded a short kickoff against Montana State and returned it 21 yards. He was selected as a preseason third-team All-American by both Football.com and Nationalchamps.net and was a near unanimous first-team All-Big 12 selection by the preseason publications. Lindy’s rated him the No. 5 inside linebacker in the NCAA, and The Sporting News selected him as the hardest-hitting linebacker in the Big 12 as the No. 15 inside linebacker in the nation. He was also on the official watch lists for the Bronko Nagurski, Dick Butkus and Rotary Lombardi awards.

2005 (Jr.)?He played in all 13 games, starting 12 including the Champs Sports Bowl, leading the team in tackles and earning co-defensive most valuable player honors on defense when the coaches named him the recipient of the Dave Jones Award (with Gerett Burl). He was also one of nine players to earn prestigious CU Victory Club status, based on a winning productivity grade for a minimum of eight games. He earned second-team All-Big 12 honors from the Associated Press, as well as all four regional newspapers that selected teams, but was a disappointing honorable mention choice by the league coaches. He also earned second-team All-Colorado team honors from the state’s chapter of the National Football Foundation. On the year, in 656 plays from scrimmage, he was in on 112 tackles, also including team bests of 70 solo and 13 for losses while tying for the team lead with five quarterback sacks (plus a team best four chasedowns, or near sacks). He added six third down stops, four quarterback pressures and a forced fumble. In the bowl game against Clemson, he led the team with eight tackles (six solo), including two quarterback sacks and three third down stops. He had eight games with 10 or more tackles, topped by a career-high 14 against Nebraska, with 13 at Miami, and 12 against both Colorado State and Kansas State. His total versus the Huskers also included a career-best three for losses. He was CU’s lineman of the week for the CSU and Texas A&M games (he had eight tackles and a sack in the latter). Heading into the year, he was one of 65 official candidates for the Dick Butkus Award, an in the preseason, Street & Smith’s selected him as an honorable mention All-American, while The Sporting News ranked him as the No. 11 inside linebacker in the nation. He had an excellent spring as the coaching staff named him the recipient of the Dan Stavely Award as the outstanding defensive lineman.

2004 (Soph.)?He earned honorable mention All-Big 12 honors from both the Associated Press as well as the conference coaches; he played in all 13 games, with 10 starts including the Houston Bowl. He finished second on the team in tackles with 93, including 54 solo and four tackles for loss; he added 10 third down stops, five passes broken up and a quarterback hurry. He really came on as the season progressed, posting 10 or more tackles in each of the last five games and had 86 in the last nine games (or 9.6 per). He had 12 stops (5 unassisted) in the win at Kansas, with two pass deflections, and was one of the few stars for CU against No. 2 Oklahoma in the Big 12 Championship game, as he had 11 tackles (10 solo) before missing most of the fourth quarter with a concussion. He earned Big 12 defensive player of the week honors (as well as CU’s) for his tremendous game at Nebraska: he had 10 tackles (5 solo, including a tackle for loss), two interceptions, two passes broken up, two third down stops, a quarterback hurry and a caused interception. He also had 10 tackles against Oklahoma State, Texas and Kansas State. The two picks against Nebraska were the first interceptions of his career, and he became only the fifth linebacker in school history to have two in the same game. On special teams, he earned three points as he had a solo tackle, a knockdown block and the caused interception on a Nebraska two-point conversion try. In the bowl win over UTEP, he led CU with nine tackles (six solo), with two for losses including a quarterback sack, and a pass broken up.

2003 (Fr.-RS)?He saw action in 11 games, including nine on defense, with one start (at Florida State). He was in for 123 plays from scrimmage, and with 26 total tackles, had the lowest play-to-tackle ratio count on team (he averaged one tackle for every 4.7 plays; the next lowest was 6.1). He had 18 solo tackles, two for losses, and three third down stops, and added another tackle on special teams. He had a season-high seven tackles (three solo) against Washington State, and recorded five against both Florida State and Missouri. He was the Scout Team Defense Award winner for the Colorado State game, which he sat out as punishment for violating a team rule during the spring (he was suspended for the last two-thirds of drills but was reinstated at the end of the spring). The coaches praised his work ethic in practice despite his knowing he’d be sitting the game out.

2002 (Fr.)?Redshirted; did not see any game action but practiced all fall at inside linebacker. He was the Scout Team Defense Award winner for two games (USC and the Big 12 Championship game versus Oklahoma). He was one of the first ’02 recruits to hit Boulder, and he spent a lot of time in the weight room once here.

HIGH SCHOOL?As a senior, he garnered Prep Football Report and SuperPrep All-Southwest honors, with SP ranking him as the No. 8 player in Louisiana (and the second linebacker). Rivals.com ranked him as the No. 30 inside linebacker in the nation, as he was named his district’s most valuable player. He was a three-time first-team all-district (8-5A) and All-Metro New Orleans performer (sophomore through senior seasons), and he garnered first-team all-state honors as a junior and senior. As a senior, he made 107 tackles, including 14 for losses and seven quarterback sacks, with an amazing 20 forced fumbles, nine recoveries, two forced fumbles and two blocked field goals. He had 89 tackles as a junior, with 23 TFL’s and 15 sacks, 11 forced fumbles and three interceptions, and had 131 tackles as a sophomore and around 75 as a freshman to give him just over 400 for his career, to go with 43 forced fumbles. Top career games included a 21-12 win over Selman as a senior, when he 15 tackles, four tackles for loss, two sacks, four forced fumbles and a recovery; a 16-14 win over Neville as a junior, when he had 23 tackles, four TFL’s (two sacks), four forced fumbles, a recovery and an interception; and a 38-21 win over Barbe his sophomore year, when he had 18 tackles, five TFL’s/two sacks and two caused fumbles. Ehret was 5-4 his senior year, 13-1 his junior year and 10-3 his sophomore season for coach Billy North, claiming the district championship his soph and junior seasons. He also lettered three times in track (throws; career bests of 132-0 in the discus and 45-0 in the shot put).

ACADEMICS?He graduated with his degree in sociology in December 2006. He was an honor roll student as a senior in high school.

PERSONAL?He was born November 10, 1983 in New Orleans, La. Hobbies include listening to gospel music, singing (he is likely the best singer on the team), watching movies, playing video games, and swimming; he also enjoys fishing with his grandmother and hunting with his uncle, and recently has taken up golf. A cousin, Marlon Favorite, played defensive tackle at Louisiana State. He hails from the same high school that produced former CU quarterback Kordell Stewart. He worked the summer of 2006 as an intern in CU’s marketing and promotions office.

Season	G	Plays	Tackles UT AT--TOT	TFL	Sacks	3DS	Hurr	FR	FF	PBU	Int
2003	9	123	18 8-- 26	2- 2	0- 0	3	0	0	0	0	0
2004	12	538	54 39-- 93	4- 7	0- 0	10	1	0	0	5	2
2005	12	656	70 42-- 112	13-53	5-36	6	4	0	1	0	0
2006	12	444	60 47-- 107	7-21	.5- 3	9	2	1	1	4	1
Totals	45	1761	202 136--338	26-83	5.5-39	28	7	1	2	9	3

ADDITIONAL STATISTICS?Interception Return Yards: 2-0, 0.0 avg. (2004); 1-4, 4.0 avg. (2006). Kickoff Returns: 1-21, 21.0 avg., 0 TD (2006); Fumble Returns: 1-10, 10.0 avg., 0 TD (2006). Special Team Tackles: 1,0?1 (2003); 1,0?1 (2004); 2,0?2 (2006).