High school coach says Super Bowl-bound Alter grad is ‘one of the smartest players’ he’s coached

KETTERING — In less than two weeks, a local high school graduate will be part of his fifth Super Bowl.

Joe Thuney is an offensive lineman for the Kansas City Chiefs but before that, he walked the halls and went to class at Alter High School and played football for the Knights.

Plenty of people in southern Montgomery County are proud of what he’s accomplished, including head football coach Ed Domsitz. He won two state titles with Thuney on his roster.

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“The secret to his success all along has been a couple of things. First of all, he’s very smart – one of the smartest players I’ve coached. Secondly, he works like crazy,” Domsitz told News Center 7′s John Bedell.

The All-Pro guard spent years with the New England Patriots, keeping pass rushers away from Tom Brady. These days he protects Patrick Mahomes.

Thuney won two Super Bowls with New England and won a third title last year with Kansas City. He missed Sunday’s AFC title game with a pectoral injury and his status for the Super Bowl is uncertain.

Domsitz congratulated Thuney after the Chiefs won the AFC on Sunday in Baltimore.

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“I understood he wasn’t in the ballgame, obviously, but just wished him well and hoped for a quick recovery. If he can be out there, he’ll be out there. I think that’s the kind of player he is,” he said.

On Super Bowl Sunday, Domsitz won’t be the only one watching from Alter with pride.

“There are a lot of people in the Alter community (that) when Joe was at New England, we became New England fans. We were fans of the Patriots. He goes to Kansas City and we’re Chiefs fans,” he said.

You can watch Thuney and the Chiefs take on the San Francisco 49ers on Feb. 11 on WHIO-TV.

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