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Former Rutgers CB Ian Thomas said he didn't leave the football team to play baseball, as coach Kyle Flood announced last month.

(Frank Conlon/For the Star-Ledger)

When Rutgers football coach Kyle Flood told reporters on Oct. 15 that cornerback Ian Thomas was leaving the team to pursue a baseball career, it surprised everyone. The person most surprised by Flood's announcement? Thomas.

"I was shocked," Thomas told NJ.com "I don't know where (Flood) got that from. I don't know why he would put that out there like that, but it's definitely not true."

Thomas' revelation comes at a time when Rutgers is dealing with credibility issues surrounding bullying allegations against defensive coordinator Dave Cohen. Rutgers has disputed Jevon Tyree's version of alleged verbal abuse and a threat, but has not made available a tutor who witnessed the incident, and media relations officials prevented players from answering questions about the incident after Sunday's practice. The tutor has not returned messages from NJ.com.

In addition, Rutgers athletic director Julie Hermann says she spoke to Tyree's father and settled the incident, but the Tyrees say that is "a lie" and have demanded Hermann produce the phone records to prove she has spoken to them.

Flood said in a press conference on Oct. 15 that Thomas "has decided to leave the program. He's going to pursue a career in baseball."

Thomas said he has no plans to play baseball – a sport he didn't play in high

school – and he never told Flood or any Rutgers coaches that was his intention.

Thomas said he left the team because he wants to transfer closer to his Baltimore hometown.

"I left the team because I just didn't like being in New Jersey. I just wanted to be closer to home and my family," Thomas said. "I'm not sure where he got the whole baseball thing from, but that's false. When I had the conference with him, I told him I wanted to be closer to home and to be closer to my family."

Thomas, who was a redshirt freshman, was unhappy being away from home before the season began, but assistant coaches encouraged him to try to stick it out. He started the first three games of the season and appeared in three more before deciding to transfer.

"It was definitely ongoing," Thomas said of his homesickness. "I knew I didn't want to be here for a while, but I stayed here. I talked to a couple of coaches about it and they told me, 'At least play first and see how you like it when you're actually playing.' So that's what I did. I gave it a shot, and then once I still didn't like it after I was starting and playing, that's when I knew this wasn't the best fit for me."

Thomas met with Flood on Oct. 13 to let the coach know he planned to transfer. It was the first time Thomas had spoken to Flood about his desire to leave Rutgers, but he assumed Flood was aware of the situation because of his conversations with assistant coaches.

"(Flood) was nonchalant about it," Thomas said. "He really didn't say much once I told him. He just asked me is this really what I wanted to do. I told him, 'Yes,' and that was the end of it."

Thomas expressed no ill will toward anyone at Rutgers. He said he simply wasn't happy at the school. He's still on campus to finish this semester before he transfers closer to home to play football.

"The coaches all treated me pretty well," Thomas said. "I didn't have a problem with the football program. It just wasn't the right fit for me."



Updated at 8:26 a.m.

I've seen comments asking why Thomas left the team but remained at Rutgers to finish the semester. This was his answer to that question:

“First, I thought I would be able to transfer now, but after I already told them I wanted to transfer, I was told that it would be smart if I finished the semester instead of trying to leave now," Thomas said. "I got caught up in that. I don’t even like being here anyways, so I might as well just finish my classes.”