University of Oklahoma Athletics

OU Celebrates Thomas in Hall of Fame

June 10, 2011 | Football

By: Athletics Communications

 
   
NORMAN, Okla. -- Sooner great Clendon Thomas will be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame Tuesday night in New York City. In honor of the event, we take a look back at his remarkable career and the impact he had on the storied tradition of Sooner football.
  
An Oklahoma City native, Thomas was a key figure in OU's historic 47-game winning streak. As a unique, triple-threat halfback and great defensive back, Thomas played a key role on Oklahoma's back-to-back national championship teams in 1955 and '56.
 
Part of OU's success came from its innovative "hurry-up" offense at the time. Years later, Thomas described it by saying: "It was just a mental attitude that we were going to make the other guy give before we would give. It worked beautifully, and we won a lot of ball games."
 
The Sooners were 31-1 during Thomas' three varsity years. As a halfback, he rushed for 2,156 yards, never averaging less than 6.3 yards per carry. A two-time All-Big 7 performer, Thomas led the nation in scoring in 1956. In 1957, he earned All-America status while finishing ninth in the Heisman voting.
 
Thomas' Hall of Fame Announcement | Sooners in the Hall of Fame | OU History & Tradition
 
In May, Thomas received some surprising news at the Sooner Spectacular when he was announced as a member of the 2011 College Football Hall of Fame class.
 
"I was a lucky young man," Thomas said upon the announcement. "I got to play for the best coach in the United States in Coach (Bud) Wilkinson, and I had great teammates. It was a privilege to come out of high school and play for one of the best teams in the country."
 
Thomas will be inducted at the National Football Foundation Annual Awards Dinner on December 6, 2011, at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City. He will officially be enshrined at the College Football Hall of Fame in the summer of 2012.
 
For all of his accomplishments, we salute Thomas, OU's 24th selection to the College Football Hall of Fame.

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