The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
A Family Affair
07.30.2003 | Football
Kalen Thornton says his favorite thing about Texas football is the family atmosphere.
Everyone on the team shares a friendship and they all look out for each other like brothers.
It makes sense when you consider family and football have always gone hand in hand for the senior defensive end.
As a child, Thornton's family evolved around football. Since Kalen was old enough to remember, he's been surrounded by stadiums, locker rooms and football helmets as his dad was a defensive end in the NFL for the Dallas Cowboys and the St. Louis Cardinals.
However, it took Kalen and his brothers, Kyle and Kenton, a little longer to realize it would become a fixture in their lives as well.
"I wouldn't let any of the boys play football until they were at least in junior high school," Kalen's dad, Bruce Thornton, said. "They grew up playing a lot of soccer or basketball. Once I saw Kalen on the football field, however, I realized he could do special things. When he came home after his first football practice, he knew he had found his game."
It also appears the ability to perform on the field runs in the family. Although all three Thornton brothers have different athletic builds and play three different positions, all possess superior ability on the gridiron. While Kalen is a 6-foot-4, 270-pound fixture on the defensive line, Kyle is a 6-foot-4, 320-pound offensive lineman who will be a freshman at UT this fall and Kenton is a 6-foot-6 wide receiver at St. Mark's High School in Dallas.
Just as their positions vary on the field, so do their personalities off it. "I think I'm in the middle," Thornton said. "I'm pretty laid back but can be goofy at times. Kyle is real quiet and serious while Kenton is just a nut. Kenton is always clowning around and really outgoing."
Despite their different styles, they have more in common than it appears. All three are cartoon fanatics with their programs of choice ranging from Ren and Stimpy in their youth to SpongeBob SquarePants in recent years. Kalen and Kenton also make a point to hit up every amusement park they can in search of the country's next great roller coaster. Most importantly, they all look out for each other.
Those close relationships are a major reason why Kyle is going to wear the Burnt Orange in 2003. After considering several other schools, it all came down to what Kalen has stressed all along.
"When it came time for Kyle to make a decision, he said the thing that mattered most was he wanted to play with Kalen for a year," Bruce Thornton said. "He wanted to be close to his big brother and he knew that Kalen would help him out a ton as a freshman."
That help will include getting adjusted to the dorms and campus as well as a survival guy to preseason two-a-day workouts. It could also include an initiation into the appreciation of jazz music, one of Kalen's favorite past-times. Most importantly, Kalen knows his way around the classrooms and campus at UT.
"One thing I know for sure about Kalen is he's very smart," Texas senior safety Dakarai Pearson said. "He's always working hard in school and getting good grades every single semester. He's one of those guys that has everything together."
A finance major, Kalen has earned Verizon Academic All-District VI and Academic All-Big 12 honors during his career at Texas and manages to pull down a high grade-point average despite the challenge of balancing a demanding student-athlete schedule. He often puts in 10-hour days on campus with classes and practice before heading home to study. The reward he reaps from that effort is well worth it in his eyes.
With aspirations of following in his father's footsteps to the NFL, Thornton is confident his background in finance can only help him if it comes time to negotiate a contract.
"I know how lucky I am to have had my college education taken care of," Thornton said. "If I'm lucky enough to make it to the NFL, I want to make sure I'm smart about money and can help take care of my family and those people who took care of me."
Thornton is primed to to become another member of the rapidly growing Longhorn family in the NFL.A quest that began when he was the final piece in one of the nation's most productive front fours in 2000, the year he joined DT Casey Hampton (Pittsburgh Steelers), DT Shaun Rogers (Detroit Lions) and DE Cory Redding (Detroit Lions) in the starting lineup as a true freshman.
Despite dealing with some nagging injuries the last two seasons, Thornton has remained productive and proven to be one of the Big 12 Conferences top ends when healthy. It is clear entering 2003 that the football world iswell aware of his talent. The Sporting News lists Thornton as the fifth-best defensive end in the nation and a preseason All-Big 12 Conference selection heading into the season.
Thornton's intelligence on the field is one of the reasons why he is considered one of the nation's elite defenders. When he started playing football his father rarely talked about doing drills or the physical part of the game. Instead he helped his oldest son by teaching him the finer aspects of the football. He emphasized to his son that on any given play there are only so many people that have an opportunity to block you.
With insight on football that takes most players years to learn, Thornton was able to step into the starting lineup his freshman year at Texas and earned first-team Freshmen All-American honors (The Sporting News). As a sophomore,he started all 11 games en route to earning honorable mention All-Big 12 honors. Last year, despite injuries, Thornton teammed with Redding to form one of the top defensive end tandems in the nation.
Through it all, Bruce Thornton has been in the stands as often as possible. Despite being an Illinois alum, he's all about Texas now. He spends more time talking to his son about the stock market these days than football, but this past summer they still managed to talk about the game they love.
"Kalen told me one thing this summer," Bruce Thornton said. "He told me he was going to be healthy. He hates being hurt more than anyone I've ever met. He told me the defensive line is going to have a great year and I can't wait to watch him play this year. He's really ready to play football and he does it with so much ease that it's a joy to watch."
The best part for Kalen is that both of his families will be there to watch every snap.
