Oklahoma State University Athletics
Thurman Thomas Elected To Pro Football Hall Of Fame
February 03, 2007 | Cowboy Football
MIAMI, Fla. - Former Oklahoma State great Thurman Thomas became the second Cowboy to be elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday.
A running back who spent most of his career with the Buffalo Bills, Thomas was one of six players selected for induction into the hall of fame on Saturday. He will join former OSU teammate Barry Sanders in Canton, Ohio, when the Class of 2007 is inducted in August.
At the press conference announcing his election into the hall of fame, Thomas elaborated on Oklahoma State having two tailbacks who played together in the same backfield both being in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
“It really is an amazing accomplishment,” Thomas said. “Barry (Sanders) is a great friend, and he's very deserving of all the awards. It's great to have two Oklahoma State Cowboys in the hall of fame who played the same position.
“It's just a great feeling. I'm in awe and just so happy.”
Thomas, who starred at OSU from 1984-1987, played 13 seasons in the NFL, 12 of those with the Buffalo BIlls. He retired as the NFL's ninth-ranked rusher with 12,074 yards and added another 4,458 yards on 472 catches. He scored 65 rushing and 23 receiving touchdowns before retiring in 2000 after spending one season with the Miami Dolphins.
Thomas was a second-round pick (40th overall) in the 1988 NFL Draft after a standout career in Stillwater in which he finished as OSU's all-time leading rusher with 4,595 yards to go along with 44 touchdowns. He was Oklahoma State's leading rusher in each of his four seasons and was the Big Eight Conference leader in both 1985 and 1987. He was voted the Big Eight Conference's Offensive Player of the Year after both seasons. His No. 34 jersey is one of three that have been retired at Oklahoma State.
Named to the NFL's All-Decade Team of the 1990s, Thomas was selected first- or second-team All-Pro and All-AFC five times and was voted to the Pro Bowl five-straight years.
In 1991, Thomas amassed more than 2,000 all-purpose yards, just the 11th player ever to do so, and earned NFL Most Valuable Player honors. His league-leading yardage output included 1,407 yards on the ground and an additional 631 yards on a career-high 62 receptions. He also scored 12 touchdowns.
Thomas reached the 2,000-yard total again in 1992, which marked a record fourth-straight season of leading the NFL in yards from scrimmage.
With the Bills, Thomas was a member of four-straight Super Bowl teams from 1990-93, and he rushed for 1,000 yards in eight consecutive seasons.
Thomas also set NFL playoff records with the most career points (126), touchdowns (21), and consecutive playoff games with a touchdown (9). Overall, he rushed for 1,442 yards and caught 76 passes for 672 yards in his 21 postseason games. He is also the first player ever to score a touchdown in four consecutive Super Bowls.
“(Thomas) should have been a first ballot Hall of Famer last year," Bills Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly told Chris Brown of buffalobills.com. "It really hits me now because Thurman Thomas was one of the greatest runners to ever play the game. Yeah he may not have had the Barry Sanders quickness or the Super Bowl rings like Emmitt Smith, but Thurman Thomas was amazing. In my eyes he's still a first ballot Hall of Famer."
