Lakeland College

Two of a kind: Thull brothers plow the right side for Muskies

Athletics - posted on 9/30/2008

Take a peek at the depth chart of the Lakeland football team, and you'll fine the name Thull at the top of both the offensive right guard and offensive right tackle spots.

It's not a misprint.

A pair of freshman identical twins, Tim and Tom Thull, have taken over the right side of the line of scrimmage for the Muskies' offense. As part of a young, promising offensive line which includes two sophomores and three freshmen, the 6-foot-4, 275-pound twins caught the eyes of the coaching staff in training camp and earned significant time immediately, which led to starting roles.

"Once they were in pads, I saw their aggressiveness and their demeanor, and I knew that they'd be good players," head coach Kevin Doherty said. "The offensive line is not an easy position to start as a freshman, and handling the pressure and handling the style change from high school to college, they're doing just a fantastic job.

"If they continue to keep working hard in how they've been practicing all year, and working in the off-season in the weight room, they're going to be great football players, they'll have a lot of success."

Offensive line coach Peter Hahm, who is also a twin, likes keeping the two together on the same side of the line, even though he has had to break them up at times due to injuries along the line.

"Right now, they're together, and they do pretty well together," Hahm said. "They'll get on each other during practice and try and help each other out. If one guy struggles, the other guy will help him out, so that's sort of the twin uniqueness they have."

The pair has been playing next to each other since their days at Kewaskum High School, which is just over 30 miles southwest of the Lakeland campus. Their connection helps them with communicating blitzes, blocking assignments and other reads on the offensive line.

"We can communicate through eye contact," Tom said. "We do that in football, we just look at each other and we know what we're doing. It must be a twin thing."

Both admitted to having nerves in their first collegiate contests at Central and against Mount St. Joseph, and the coaches noticed they were slightly tentative. But Tim (No. 68) and Tom (No. 75) believe they have adjusted and settled in nicely.

"Pass blocking is a little different, but I think the biggest difference is the quickness," Tim said. "Everyone's a lot stronger and quicker than they were in high school, so that's the biggest thing I've had to adapt to. I'm getting used to it though."

Hahm said while both need improvement in pass blocking, they are excellent run blockers and have the potential to be all-conference players somewhere down the line, if not this year.

"They run block well, obviously coming from a high school where their running game was pretty decent," Hahm said. "The biggest area of improvement that they need to work on is their pass (blocking) skills. Each and every day in 'one-on-ones' we teach that, so they're coming along."

Along with looking the same in physical appearance and stature, the two also share several interests off the field. Both enjoy the TV show "South Park," the movie "Tommy Boy," the Green Bay Packers and former Packer quarterback Brett Favre.

In addition, both Tim and Tom identified the small school setting and being close to home as the main reasons they chose to attend Lakeland.

So what is actually different about the two?

Besides the fact that Tom is majoring in accounting while Tim remains undecided on a major, both talk about some striking personality differences.

"Tim likes to be the center of attention a lot more than I do," Tom said. "I'm more of a quiet guy; he likes to be the funnier person."

Maybe this is what causes them to fight, or at least wrestle around, every now and then.

"Ever since we were younger and since we've been growing up, we've always fought a lot," Tim said. "It's something we've always done, at least wrestling with each other and causing some sort of trouble, but we get along great. It's kind of nice having a twin because he's always there, and if you ever need anything, he's always there to ask."

"It's more for fun, not too serious," Tom added.

Both players, as well as Hahm, know that the starting experience as a freshman will be key for the next three years, and all are excited to see the end result.

For now, the Thull brothers are just enjoying the ride and working to improve every day.

"It's awesome, it's a great experience, something I've always dreamed of doing," Tim said. "After high school, coming to play college football and you get to start, it's great. I couldn't ask for anything more."

"We're getting a lot better than we were at the start, but we still have a lot to work on," Tom said. "I think we're doing pretty well right now. We just need to keep working hard."

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