Canton NFL player’s jersey returned to wall after principal removes it
Tim Baechler gives the thumbs up sign after he rehung the Devin Thomas jersey that was removed for unknown reasons by Canton principal David Reed-Nordwall.
Former Canton High School student-athlete Devin Thomas was gracious enough to donate two Washington Redskins jerseys — one of which he autographed — to his alma mater a few years ago.
The jerseys were proudly hung on a wall of Canton’s Phase 3 athletic complex — not far from similar shrines dedicated to former Chief greats Allison Schmitt and Anne Morrell.
Thomas carved out a solid six-year NFL career with the Redskins and New York Giants, helping the latter team win a Super Bowl.
In recent days, Canton principal David Reed-Nordwall removed Thomas’s framed jerseys and placed them in a storage closet for reasons unknown.
The Schmitt and Morrell shrines were untouched.
Sparking an uproar
The removal of Thomas’s jerseys sparked an uproar among Canton alumni, teachers and other district administrators — so much so that the jerseys were recovered Thursday (the glass from one frame was damaged during the removal process) and put back in their former location on the wall by Salem Athletic Director Tim Baechler, who was Thomas’s football coach at Canton.
When Thomas was informed by SHN about the jersey debacle, he responded with his usual grace.
“I have no idea (why the jerseys were taken down),” Thomas stated.
When informed that a possible motivation was that one of the jerseys had the word Redskins just below the neckline, Thomas responded: “Wow! I’m going to have to sign a Giants jersey so they can put that up.”
No explanation from Reed-Norwall
SocialHouseNews.com reached out to Plymouth-Canton Community Schools and Reed-Nordwall for an explanation.
He had yet to respond by 2:30 p.m. Thursday.
The district sent SHN this statement on Wednesday:
“Last evening, District officials were made aware that a signed Devin Thomas jersey had been removed from display at Canton High School. Thomas, a graduate of Canton High School, went on to play at Michigan State University and in the NFL from 2008 to 2013.
“The jersey was originally donated by Thomas to a staff member for display in the school’s athletic facility. The decision by the school principal to remove the jersey was made in error, and steps are being taken to return it to its original location.”
Happy ending
It is unclear whether Reed-Nordwall will face any disciplinary consequences in the wake of his removing the jerseys.
A Canton High School staff member, who asked to remain anonymous, stated: “This was all decided by the principal himself and had zero to do with the new athletic director (Tiffany Roberts). In fact, she was caught off guard. Apparently he took it down and put it in a closet with all the old Chief signs, etc.”
The 2024-25 school year is the first that Canton High School has used the nickname Cobras after the board of education voted to remove the longstanding Chiefs nickname and logo.
Ed Wright can be reached at 734-664-4657 or edwright@socialhousenews.com.
