Clendon Thomas boit

 

Clendon Thomas, legendary OU football RB, dies at 90

 He was not on the list.

Clendon Thomas, a former Southeast High School standout who starred at running back for Oklahoma before an 11-year NFL career, died late Monday night. He was 90.

His lifelong friend and former Sooner teammate, Chuck Bowman, shared the news with The Oklahoman.

Thomas played for coach Bud Wilkinson at OU from 1955-57 — a stretch in which the Sooners went 31-1. Thomas was a key figure on OU’s back-to-back national championship teams in 1955 and 1956.

Thomas led the nation in scoring in 1956. He finished his Sooner career with 30 rushing touchdowns and more than 2,000 rushing yards.

He played 11 NFL seasons, mostly as a defensive back, for the Rams and Steelers. He was named to the 1963 Pro Bowl.

Thomas was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2011.

“Usually guys that have won all the awards he’s won and done all the things he’s done have an ego problem,” Bowman once told The Oklahoman of Thomas. “He was always the same guy every day.”

Aside from all of his accomplishments on the gridiron, Thomas was a ground-floor member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA). In 1956, Thomas attended the FCA’s first summer conference in Estes Park, Colorado.

Services are expected to be held at Putnam City Baptist Church, but the family is still finalizing the details.

No. 46, 35, 28

Positions            Defensive back

End

Flanker

Halfback

Personal information

Born      December 28, 1935

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S.

Died      January 26, 2026 (aged 90)

Listed height     6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)

Listed weight    196 lb (89 kg)

Career information

High school       Southeast (Oklahoma City)

College                Oklahoma

NFL draft            1958: 2nd round, 19th overall pick

Career history

 

    Los Angeles Rams (1958–1961)

    Pittsburgh Steelers (1962–1968)

    Chicago Bears (1969)*

 

* Offseason and/or practice squad member only

Awards and highlights

 

    Second-team All-Pro (1963)

    Pro Bowl (1963)

    Pittsburgh Steelers Legends team

    2× National champion (1955, 1956)

    Consensus All-American (1957)

    Second-team All-American (1956)

    2× First-team All-Big Eight (1956, 1957)

    Second-team All-Big Seven (1955)

 

Career NFL statistics

Interceptions   27

Fumble recoveries        10

Receptions        60

Receiving yards               1,046

Total touchdowns           5