Professional Football Player. A quarterback, he is remembered for his eight year National Football League career, primarily with the Philadelphia Eagles, that saw him thrice named to the Pro Bowl. Raised in the Birmingham, Alabama suburbs, he was a star athlete in high school, later playing football, basketball, and baseball at the Virginia Military Institute. Taken by the Los Angeles Rams as the 7th pick in the 1949 NFL draft, he played for them briefly, then spent 1951 with the Green Bay Packers before joining the Eagles in 1952. Thomason's best year came in 1953 when he passed for 28 Touchdowns, helped the team to six victories, and ruined the Cleveland Browns' perfect season in the final game. On November 8, 1953 he threw for 437 yards and four TDs in a 30-7 win over the New York Giants, becoming one of the first passers to break the 400 yard barrier. Selected to the Pro Bowl in 1953, 1955, and 1956, he retired following the 1957 campaign having completed 51% of his passes for 9,480 yards and 68 TDs. In 1963 Thomason settled in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he ran a heavy equipment company. A member of the VMI Hall-of-Fame, he lived out his days in Charlotte and died of heart failure.
Professional Football Player. A quarterback, he is remembered for his eight year National Football League career, primarily with the Philadelphia Eagles, that saw him thrice named to the Pro Bowl. Raised in the Birmingham, Alabama suburbs, he was a star athlete in high school, later playing football, basketball, and baseball at the Virginia Military Institute. Taken by the Los Angeles Rams as the 7th pick in the 1949 NFL draft, he played for them briefly, then spent 1951 with the Green Bay Packers before joining the Eagles in 1952. Thomason's best year came in 1953 when he passed for 28 Touchdowns, helped the team to six victories, and ruined the Cleveland Browns' perfect season in the final game. On November 8, 1953 he threw for 437 yards and four TDs in a 30-7 win over the New York Giants, becoming one of the first passers to break the 400 yard barrier. Selected to the Pro Bowl in 1953, 1955, and 1956, he retired following the 1957 campaign having completed 51% of his passes for 9,480 yards and 68 TDs. In 1963 Thomason settled in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he ran a heavy equipment company. A member of the VMI Hall-of-Fame, he lived out his days in Charlotte and died of heart failure.
Bio by: Bob Hufford
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