Earl Thomas of Texas is the most intriguing man in the world

Texas strong safety Earl Thomas continues to look like a star in the making this season.

In the Longhorns' 41-14 route against Oklahoma State, Thomas was one of the defensive standouts. He intercepted a pass that was returned for a touchdown and broke up two other throws.

This comes two weeks after Thomas secured Texas' win over Oklahoma with a fourth-quarter interception.

On the season, Thomas has 37 tackles, six interceptions, 11 pass breakups and two touchdowns.

Compare that to Tennessee's Eric Berry who has 57 tackles, six pass breakups and only one interception. In Berry's stellar sophomore season, he had 72 tackles, seven interceptions and six pass breakups.

Berry might get all the NFL Draft headlines, but Thomas should not be overlooked. He's a redshirt sophomore, making him eligible for the draft next year. Given the uncertainty of the NFL rookie pay scale, a larger number of redshirt sophomore could enter the draft.

Thomas and Berry compare favorably because they play the same position and have very similar size. Thomas is listed at 5-foot-10 and 197 pounds. Berry is at 5-foot-11 and 203 pounds.

They also have very similar playing styles. Both could probably line up at cornerback against a team's No. 1 receiver and do well. They show excellent instincts when the ball is in the air and are dangerous with the ball in their hands.

Although Berry is only slightly bigger, he plays much better against the run. In Thomas' defense, though, he's not always asked to play the run in Texas' scheme.

But if Berry is supposedly the next Ed Reed, Thomas just might be the next Eric Berry. And there's certainly nothing wrong with that.