Clendon Thomas

Clendon Thomas
Born: (1935-12-28) December 28, 1935
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Career information
Position(s) Halfback
Defensive back
Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight 196 lb (89 kg)
College Oklahoma
NFL draft 1958 / Round: 2 / Pick 19
Career history
As player
1958–1961 Los Angeles Rams
1962–1968 Pittsburgh Steelers
Career highlights and awards
Pro Bowls 1

Clendon Thomas (born December 28, 1935 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) is a former American football halfback and Defensive back who played eleven seasons in the National Football League.

In college, he was a star athlete for the Oklahoma Sooners under coach Bud Wilkinson. He led the Sooners in scoring during both the 1956 and '57 seasons, while also leading the nation in the category during the 1956 season.[1] He helped lead the Sooners to back-to-back national championships in 1955 and 1956.[2] He was an All-Conference selection his junior and senior years[3] and was a consensus All-American his senior year.[1] He also finished in ninth place in the Heisman Trophy balloting that season (the award was won by John David Crow that year).[4]

In the 1958 NFL Draft, Thomas was selected by the Los Angeles Rams in the second round. He played for the Rams for four seasons before being traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers where he played for another seven years and finished his career. He was selected to the Pro Bowl after the 1963 NFL season.

Thomas was selected for induction into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2011.[5]

After retiring from football, Thomas had various business ventures. In 1978, he founded Chemical Products Corporation in Oklahoma City. The company manufactured water repellents treatments for concrete and similar surfaces. It was a pioneer in the use of siloxane-based chemistry.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "All-American: Clendon Thomas". SoonerSports.com. University of Oklahoma Athletic Department. Retrieved 2007-03-22.
  2. ↑ "2007 Ballot for College Football Hall of Fame Announced". National Football Foundation. 2007-03-07. Retrieved 2007-03-22.
  3. ↑ "All-Conference Players". SoonerSports.com. University of Oklahoma Athletic Department. Archived from the original on 2010-05-23. Retrieved 2007-08-22.
  4. ↑ "1957 - 23rd Award". Heisman.com. Archived from the original on 2011-07-06. Retrieved 2011-05-17.
  5. ↑ "NFF Announces 2011 Football Bowl Subdivision College Football Hall of Fame Class". College Football Hall of Fame. Retrieved 2011-05-18.
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