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Saint Leo Player Taking The Lead

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By JOEY JOHNSTON

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 31, 2008

He strives for perfection in the classroom, on the court, in the community.

By all accounts, Saint Leo University basketball player Thomas Kaiser, who just completed his sophomore season, is a leader.

He always considered that a compliment.

Now it's a responsibility.

Kaiser, formerly of Jesuit High, participated in this week's NCAA Foundation Leadership Conference, an annual event held at Disney's Yacht Club and Wide World of Sports Complex. He was nominated by Saint Leo basketball coach Mike Madagan and selected by the NCAA.

He found himself among 350 college athletes around the nation - from Division I to Division III, from every imaginable sport. They listened to inspirational speakers. They discussed issues. Mostly, they learned more about themselves.

Kaiser, a biology major (3.98 grade-point average) who plans to attend medical school, called it "a powerful experience." He was placed in an eclectic group, saying he particularly bonded with a female hockey player, a male water polo athlete and a female lacrosse player.

"There was so much intellectual maturity, so many open lines of communication," Kaiser said. "The main thing I discovered - and I knew this was a weakness of mine - was that I can't be scared to take chances and fail. People have always attached the 'leader' role to me and I took it as leading by example. It's clear to me now that successful leaders have to be more verbal - or at least more verbal that I have been.

"I'll be going into my junior year, and I won't be one of the younger guys on the team, so it's certainly time for me to step up and be more of a leader. Being selected for this conference was a real honor. But it was more than I expected. It opened my eyes."

Madagan, who took his team on a mission trip to the Dominican Republic earlier this month, listed leadership development as a priority for his team. And that starts, he believes, with Kaiser.

"He holds himself to the highest standards, more than any other athlete I've seen in my 20 years of coaching, in terms of his performance academically," Madagan said. "Sometimes, I wish he would just be comfortable with making a mistake. The brilliance he has inside him - on and off the court - it's almost like he's not going to go for it until he's sure he can do something well.

"Sometimes, you've got to be willing to be wrong in order to be right. Thomas holds himself to these high standards, but he wasn't so willing to speak up. He's the kind of guy who can say to a teammate, 'Hey, you're out of line,' and there aren't too many guys who would say to him, 'Who are you to say that?' People respect Thomas, and he needs to know that."

Who wouldn't admire this?

Kaiser, 20, volunteers at Shriners Hospital, where his mother is a nurse. Once a week, he feeds the homeless. When he has a goal, he writes it down.

Example: Kaiser wanted to improve his Spanish-speaking ability. He wrote that down. He has been watching Spanish television, working on verb conjugation, mingling with Spanish-speaking people, practicing his new words.

"He always seems to be working toward things," said Kaiser's mother, Colleen. "He's not one to sit around and do nothing. He has always told us, 'God has given me a lot of blessings,' so he wants to come through and do things."

That may include becoming an orthopedic surgeon.

It probably means an enhancement of his on-court role with the Lions.

And it definitely includes a hands-on style of leadership.

Kaiser, a 6-foot-5, 210-pound forward, averaged 4.4 points and 1.1 rebounds last season. Madagan said Kaiser might be the most skilled player in Saint Leo's program - a good offensive performer who needs more defensive polish.

"I need to break out and really emerge," Kaiser said. "That's what I'm aiming for."

Because that's what leaders do.

Reporter Joey Johnston can be reached at (813) 259-7353 or jjohnston@tampatrib.com.

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