North Carolina State University Athletics
Two is Always Better than One
9/29/2014 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
RALEIGH, N.C.- Having a sibling as a teammate can have its benefits, but having a twin as a teammate is something rare and special.
Twins Aaron and Alec Thomas from the men’s cross country team are in their first season together at NC State.
The twins know a few things about forming their own pack. The very humble, freshmen set of twins, hail from Brentwood, Tenn. where together they amassed three Tennessee AAA State Championships from 2011 to 2013.
The two have been friends since birth and as Alec put it, “There is definitely benefits, we share the same interests and it’s great to have a brother and friend always there; he’s also a great training partner. There is always someone to call or text to hang out.”
There always seems to be a healthy dose of competition between siblings but the two wouldn’t quite say who’s the fastest.
“We’re pretty equal,” Aaron Thomas said. “He’s (Alec) probably won a few more races than I have but again, it’s nice to be right beside each other in the race.”
Alec added that the two key off of each other, and also added that when it came to who is the fastest they are very close.
It was a no-brainer for the twins to choose NC State. With both of them as engineering majors, the program was very enticing and not to mention the prestigious nature of NC State’s track and field and cross country programs were too much for them to pass up. Alec knew that NC State was a great balance of everything for them.
“We love the team here and we love Coach Geiger and the rest of the staff. The team atmosphere is strong and I think the program is headed in a great direction,” Alec said. “The engineering program also adds to it.”
The two are multi-talented and along with running cross country, they also gave other sports a try while in high school.
“We played basketball freshman year. We also played soccer and golf, but then gave it up because we just wanted to run,” Aaron said.
Alec noted that there is only one con of being a twin- others not being able to tell one another apart.
“I don’t take it personal. I mean I get it, it’s not a big deal though,” Alec said.
Their goals fall nothing short of achieving all there is to achieve while at NC State.
“We both want to make the travel squad, compete at the highest level and do everything we can to compete and help the team make the ACC championships and go to nationals,” Alec said.
“All-American and Academic All-American honors along with competing at the highest level are definitely a part of our goals as well,” Aaron added.
They also shared that they wanted to help the team achieve a top-5 finish nationally.
Both of their prep careers are well decorated. Along with their aforementioned three Tennessee State Championships, they shared that they both are proud of their sub-nine minute finishes in the 3200 meter race, finishing 8:56 and 8:57 respectively their senior year.
Competing together, finishing together and winning together is something the twins seem to live by, and they plan to carry that out the latter as much as possible while here at NC State.
In their first meet of the season, both ran unattached in the Wolfpack Challenge finishing 6th and 7th with time of 14:47 and 14:48, respectively.
The team will next compete in South Bend, Ind. for the Notre Dame Invitational on Oct. 3.
