Jeritt Thayer

Barry Faulkner

It wasn’t until his ninth season of soccer, having played for a

handful of different coaches in a number of positions, that Jeritt

Thayer was finally cast in the role he was born to play. Now, the

“overnight sensation” hopes the discovery didn’t come too late.

The Corona del Mar High senior spent nearly all of his six club

seasons on the back line and continued there the first two of his

three varsity seasons with the Sea Kings.

Even well into his senior campaign, the guy CdM Coach Pat

Callaghan called the best athlete on the team, was being utilized at

less than full potential.

But early in the Pacific Coast League schedule, Callahan finally

shifted the tenacious competitor with insatiable endurance and

fearless aggression from defensive center midfielder to attacking

center midfielder.

It was like turning the key to the team’s ignition.

“It gave him free reign to be more himself,” recalled Callaghan,

who watched the 6-foot, 145-pound co-captain propel the Sea Kings to

another PCL championship, then a postseason run to the CIF Southern

Section Division II semifinals.

“In the flow of the game, he was our No. 1 playmaker,” Callaghan

said. “He controlled the ball, received possession, gained possession

and distributed. He just got our offense started.

“And on set plays, we was our No. 1 option, whether it was a

throw-in or a corner kick to the far post. He is strong with the

right foot and the left foot, he’s quick and strong and is very, very

good in the air. And he has a good instinctive sense for the game.”

Thayer’s deft play in the midfield, including an unlikely ability

to dominate on balls in the air, often gaining possession against

more physically imposing foes, may not have been unveiled in time to

capture the imagination of college recruiters.

“Both me and my assistant, Matt Totten, have been trying to

promote Jeritt to everyone we can,” Callaghan said. “But there aren’t

coaches banging on his door or calling him at home. He can play

Division I [college] soccer. He just needs an opportunity. I

definitely consider him a diamond in the rough. He’s a darkhorse.”

The Daily Pilot Athlete of the Week, who ran cross country in the

fall and will be the starting shortstop on the baseball team this

spring, said he is anxious to continue his soccer career as a

collegian. He has contacted coaches at NYU (where his older sister

Jaclyn plays for the women’s program) and Boston University and is

also receiving some interest from Irvine Valley Community College.

But even Thayer believes his best soccer may be in front of him.

“I’m excited about the new role I played this season and I think I

can improve much more,” he said. “I think I have potential and it’s

fun to think about what may happen in the future.” The immediate past

is also sure to generate fond memories for Thayer, despite his

penchant for self-criticism.

“He’s very hard on himself,” Callaghan said. “He never thinks he

plays well and always thinks there is room for improvement. He’s a

perfectionist.” Thayer agrees self-satisfaction is never part of his

postgame reflection, but views such a critical eye as one of his

strengths.

“I’m never lacking for motivation,” he said.

Thayer, whose play helped the Sea Kings earn a 1-0 second-round playoff win over Santa Monica Feb. 24, then eliminate St. Francis,

3-2, in a Feb. 26 quarterfinal, is also never at a loss for energy on

the field, according to his coach.

“Even though we’ve took some of his defensive responsibilities

away, we still expected him to cover a lot of ground in the middle of

the field,” Callaghan said. “But whenever we looked on the field, he

was everywhere ... all the time. He just gave the coaching staff all

it could ask.”

Now, all Thayer asks is a chance to do the same for some college

coaches.