Hall of Fame
Position: Linebacker
Years: 1985-1988
Place of Birth: Miami, FL
Date of Birth: Jan 01, 1967
Place of Death: Miami, FL
Date of Death: Feb 08, 2000
Jersey Number: 55
Height: 6-3"
Weight: 230
High School: South Miami Senior (FL)
One of the most feared linebackers in Alabama history, Derrick Thomas concluded his career as the NCAA FBS leader in career sacks with 52 en route to winning unanimous All-America honors in 1988. He becomes the 18th Crimson Tide player to enter the College Football Hall of Fame.
The 1988 Butkus Award winner as the top linebacker in the country, Thomas led the Crimson Tide to an impressive 35-5-1 record and four consecutive bowl berths, including wins in the 1985 Aloha Bowl and the 1986 and 1988 Sun Bowls. Following his senior season, the two-time all-conference selection was named SEC Defensive Player of the Year, and he earned National Defensive Player of the Year awards from CBS, Football News and the Washington Touchdown Club. A finalist for the Lombardi Award in 1988, Thomas finished in the top 10 in the Heisman Trophy voting, and he was selected as the 1988-89 SEC Athlete of the Year across all sports. Besides the NCAA mark, he also set the SEC records for sacks in a season (27), and he finished his career with 204 tackles, 74 tackles for loss, 10 forced fumbles, two safeties and nine blocked kicks. Thomas played alongside Hall of Famer Cornelius Bennett during his time in Tuscaloosa.
Selected with the fourth overall pick in the 1989 NFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs, Thomas spent his entire 11-year career with the Chiefs, culminating with his induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2009. The 1989 Defensive Rookie of the Year, he was elected to the Pro Bowl every year from 1989-97. The 1993 Walter Payton Man of the Year, Thomas holds the NFL record for sacks in a game with seven, and he was a member of the 1990s All-Decade Team.
A member of both the 1980s Alabama Team of the Decade and All-SEC Decade Team, Thomas is a member of the Alabama Centennial Team, and he was named a Sun Bowl Legend in 2000. Inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 2001, Thomas was active in the community, starting the 3rd and Long Foundation in Kansas City to teach low-income children to read. The Miami native passed away on Feb. 8, 2000 at the age of 33.
