 Thomas taking a snap against USC in 2010 | |||||||||||||
| No. 1 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Quarterback | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born | (1990-05-23)May 23, 1990 (age 35) Houston, Texas, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||||||
| Weight | 215 lb (98 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school | Aldine (TX) | ||||||||||||
| College | Oregon | ||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 2012: undrafted | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| Career Arena League statistics | |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| Stats at CFL.ca (archive) | |||||||||||||
Darron Varnell Thomas (born May 23, 1990) is an American formerfootballquarterback. He was the starting quarterback for theUniversity of Oregon football team that reached the2011 BCS National Championship Game and won the2012 Rose Bowl. He played professionally for thePortland Thunder/Steel of theArena Football League (AFL) from 2014 to 2016.
Thomas was born inHouston, Texas, on May 23, 1990, to Latina Thomas and Darren Waters. Thomas attendedAldine High School inAldine, Texas.[1] As a freshman at Aldine, Thomas played as arunning back.[1] During summer practice before Thomas' sophomore year, Aldine head coach, Bob Jones, had the idea of switching Thomas to quarterback to run his spread offense.[1] Thomas was opposed to the switch, but made it anyway.[1] During his senior season, Thomas verbally committed toLouisiana State University.[2] When the LSU recruiting class for quarterbacks became 3 members, Thomas de-committed.[3]
Thomas committed to theUniversity of Oregon on December 14, 2007,[4] choosing Oregon over scholarships fromFlorida,LSU,Miami (FL),Minnesota,Missouri,Nebraska, andOklahoma State.[5]
| Name | Hometown | School | Height | Weight | 40‡ | Commit date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Darron Thomas QB | Aldine, Texas | Aldine High School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | 4.52 | Dec 14, 2007 |
Recruit ratings:Scout:  Rivals: (80) | ||||||
| Overall recruit ranking: Scout: 15 (QB) Rivals: 6 (QB), 43 (TX) ESPN: 17 (ATH) | ||||||
Sources:
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Thomas completed his career at Oregon with a 24–3 record as a starter, leading the Ducks to two consecutive Pac-12 Championships, including appearances in twoBCS Bowl games.
Just months removed from Aldine High in Houston, Thomas came off the bench as a true freshman to lead a stirring second-half rally against Boise State in his first collegiate game.[6] Thomas tossed three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter to rally Oregon from a 24-point deficit. The Ducks lost toBoise State 37–32 but his unexpected debut and impressive performance led many fans to believe he would be the true successor toDennis Dixon, however, he would continue to backupJeremiah Masoli for the remainder of the 2008 season.
After redshirting the 2009 season, Thomas became the starting quarterback for the Ducks in2010[7] after previous starterJeremiah Masoli was suspended for the 2010 season and eventually dismissed from the team.
In his first season as a starter, Thomas threw for 2,881 yards and 30 touchdowns, leading Oregon to a 12–0 regular season record, and an appearance in the2011 BCS National Championship Game against Auburn. In that game, Thomas threw for 363 yards and two touchdowns, but also threw two interceptions. Auburn would ultimately go on to win 22–19, with a last-second field goal. After the season, Thomas was named as a 2nd Team All-Pac-10 Conference selection at quarterback[8] and the co-recipient of the Skeie's Award as the team's most outstanding player.[9]
During the 2011 season, Thomas threw for 2,761 yards, and a single season school record of 33 touchdowns, leading the Ducks to the2012 Rose Bowl, in which Thomas threw for 268 yards and 3 touchdowns to propel Oregon to a 45–38 victory over Wisconsin. The Ducks finished the season 12–2 (8–1 Pac-12) with a #4 final season ranking.[10][11]
| Passing | Rushing | ||||||||||||
| Season | Team | GP | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | TD |
| 2008 | Oregon | 5 | 16 | 33 | 48.5 | 268 | 3 | 1 | 140.6 | 13 | 27 | 2.1 | 1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Oregon | 13 | 222 | 361 | 61.5 | 2,881 | 30 | 9 | 151.0 | 93 | 486 | 5.2 | 5 |
| 2011 | Oregon | 13 | 211 | 339 | 62.2 | 2,761 | 33 | 7 | 158.7 | 56 | 206 | 3.7 | 3 |
| Career | 31 | 449 | 733 | 61.3 | 5,910 | 66 | 17 | 154.1 | 162 | 719 | 4.4 | 9 | |
At the end of his junior season, Thomas surprisingly chose to forgo his senior year to enter the2012 NFL draft but was neither drafted nor signed as anundrafted free agent by any NFL team. He was rated the 17th best quarterback in the 2012 Draft by NFLDraftScout.com.[12]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft2+5⁄8 in (1.90 m) | 220 lb (100 kg) | 32+7⁄8 in (0.84 m) | 9+1⁄2 in (0.24 m) | 4.80 s | 1.66 s | 2.79 s | 4.28 s | 7.17 s | 36 in (0.91 m) | 10 ft 1 in (3.07 m) | 14 reps | |
| All values fromNFL Combine[12][13] | ||||||||||||
On October 9, 2012, Thomas signed a practice roster agreement with theCalgary Stampeders of theCanadian Football League.[14]
He would later sign with theLincoln Haymakers of theChampions Professional Indoor Football League but never played a game for the Haymakers.[15]
Thomas was assigned to thePortland Thunder of theArena Football League on October 10, 2013.[16] Thomas fits in with the ownership's promise of getting players with Oregon ties. Thomas started the first three games of the season for the Thunder before being benched in favor ofDanny Southwick. Thomas became the primary back up for the Thunder since losing his starting position.[17] Entering his second season with the Thunder in 2015, Thomas was once again the backup quarterback toKyle Rowley.[18]
Thomas participated in the NFL's first Veteran Combine in March 2015.[19] On January 27, 2016, he was named head coachChris Miller's franchise player inMajor League Football.[20] The team was to be called the Oregon Crash but the season never started.[21]
Thomas was assigned to thePortland Steel on April 25, 2016.[22] He made his only start of the season on May 10, 2016, against theLos Angeles Kiss, completing 25 of 49 passes for 259 yards, 3 touchdowns and 5 interceptions in a 66–27 loss.[23]
On October 28, 2016, Thomas signed with theArizona Rattlers, who joined theIndoor Football League a week prior. Thomas played in 5 games for the Rattlers in 2017, completing 54 of 93 passes for 576 yards, 13 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. He also scored four rushing touchdowns.[24] On July 8, the Rattlers defeated theSioux Falls Storm in theUnited Bowl by a score of 50–41.[25]
On February 5, 2018, AZ Central Sports columnist Richard Obert reported that Thomas was traded to theCedar Rapids Titans in exchange for local Arizona product Jordan Gehrke.[26] Thomas was released by the Titans on February 21, 2018.[27]
On May 17, 2018, Thomas signed with theMassachusetts Pirates of theNational Arena League.
Thomas was assigned to theWashington Valor in 2019, but he was placed on reassignment on April 19, 2019.
| Year | Team | Passing | Rushing | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | TD | ||
| 2014 | Portland | 75 | 157 | 47.8 | 818 | 13 | 9 | 60.4 | 37 | 82 | 10 |
| 2015 | Portland | 38 | 58 | 65.5 | 374 | 11 | 1 | 115.9 | 9 | 12 | 1 |
| 2016 | Portland | 25 | 49 | 51.0 | 259 | 3 | 5 | 42.4 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Career[28] | 138 | 264 | 52.3 | 1,451 | 27 | 15 | 70.4 | 47 | 96 | 11 | |
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