Lamar Thomas
Encyclopedia
Lamar Thomas is a former NFL
player and former color commentator
. Thomas played college football, college basketball and ran Track at the University of Miami
before being drafted in the third round of the 1993 NFL Draft
by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
.
With the University of Miami
Thomas set a then-school record for most receptions in a career (later eclipsed by Reggie Wayne
). He was the victim of "The Strip", George Teague
's strip of the football at the 10 yard line in the 1993 Sugar Bowl
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dv00gGBeXA that continued an Alabama
rout of the University of Miami
.
Thomas was interviewed about his time at the University of Miami for the documentary The U
, which premiered December 12th, 2009 on ESPN
.
Thomas played eight seasons in the NFL as a wide receiver
, three with the Buccaneers and five with the Miami Dolphins
, where he had his greatest success. In his final year of NFL play, he had 43 receptions for 603 yards and five touchdowns. His last two seasons were spent on injured reserve (shoulder and hip).
He was fired from his color-commentary position due to his comments during an on-field brawl between the University of Miami
and FIU
.
on October 14, 2006, Thomas defended his alma mater
. Besides defending the Miami players, he expressed a desire to join the fight himself:
Thomas later claimed he was joking about his comments, but two days after this incident, Comcast Sports Southeast
fired him.
On the October 17, 2006 episode of Fox News Channel's
Hannity & Colmes
, Thomas said he got caught up in the moment and made a mistake. However, he said he did not blame Comcast for firing him.
Later, a message from Thomas was allegedly posted to the Miami discussion board on scout.com. He claimed that he had been taken aside earlier in the year and told he needed to be "more pro-UM" as his criticism of the struggling team had been taken rather hard by the players. He dismissed concerns that he was serious when he said he wished he could have gone down on the field and joined in ("I'm 36 years old, what the hell would I have accomplished?") and said "If that was during my tenure we would have invited FIU to Tamiami Park
to get it on". He was not, he said, hired to be neutral.
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
player and former color commentator
Color commentator
A color commentator is a sports commentator who assists the play-by-play announcer, often by filling in any time when play is not in progress. The color analyst and main commentator will often exchange comments freely throughout the broadcast, when the play-by-play announcer is not describing the...
. Thomas played college football, college basketball and ran Track at the University of Miami
University of Miami
The University of Miami is a private, non-sectarian university founded in 1925 with its main campus in Coral Gables, Florida, a medical campus in Miami city proper at Civic Center, and an oceanographic research facility on Virginia Key., the university currently enrolls 15,629 students in 12...
before being drafted in the third round of the 1993 NFL Draft
1993 NFL Draft
The 1993 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 25-26, 1993...
by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football franchise based in Tampa, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the Southern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League – they are the only team in the division not to come from the old NFC West...
.
With the University of Miami
University of Miami
The University of Miami is a private, non-sectarian university founded in 1925 with its main campus in Coral Gables, Florida, a medical campus in Miami city proper at Civic Center, and an oceanographic research facility on Virginia Key., the university currently enrolls 15,629 students in 12...
Thomas set a then-school record for most receptions in a career (later eclipsed by Reggie Wayne
Reggie Wayne
Reginald "Reggie" Wayne is a professional American football wide receiver for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League. Wayne was selected in the 1st round of the 2001 NFL Draft by the Colts...
). He was the victim of "The Strip", George Teague
George Teague
George Theo Teague is a former American football player who played free safety in the National Football League with the Dallas Cowboys, Green Bay Packers, and Miami Dolphins.-College:...
's strip of the football at the 10 yard line in the 1993 Sugar Bowl
Sugar Bowl
The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Sugar Bowl has been played annually since January 1, 1935, and celebrated its 75th anniversary on January 2, 2009...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dv00gGBeXA that continued an Alabama
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
rout of the University of Miami
University of Miami
The University of Miami is a private, non-sectarian university founded in 1925 with its main campus in Coral Gables, Florida, a medical campus in Miami city proper at Civic Center, and an oceanographic research facility on Virginia Key., the university currently enrolls 15,629 students in 12...
.
Thomas was interviewed about his time at the University of Miami for the documentary The U
The U (documentary)
The U is a 2009 documentary film produced by Miami based media studio rakontur and directed by Billy Corben. The U covers the rise and dominance of the Miami Hurricanes football team during the late 1980s and early 1990s....
, which premiered December 12th, 2009 on ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
.
Thomas played eight seasons in the NFL as a wide receiver
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
, three with the Buccaneers and five with the Miami Dolphins
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a Professional football team based in the Miami metropolitan area in Florida. The team is part of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
, where he had his greatest success. In his final year of NFL play, he had 43 receptions for 603 yards and five touchdowns. His last two seasons were spent on injured reserve (shoulder and hip).
He was fired from his color-commentary position due to his comments during an on-field brawl between the University of Miami
University of Miami
The University of Miami is a private, non-sectarian university founded in 1925 with its main campus in Coral Gables, Florida, a medical campus in Miami city proper at Civic Center, and an oceanographic research facility on Virginia Key., the university currently enrolls 15,629 students in 12...
and FIU
Florida International University
Florida International University is an American public research university in metropolitan Miami, Florida, in the United States, with its main campus in University Park...
.
Miami/FIU controversy
During an intense on-field brawl between Miami and FIUMiami-FIU brawl
The Florida International University – University of Miami was a bench-clearing brawl that occurred on October 14, 2006 in a college football game between the University of Miami Hurricanes and the at the Orange Bowl stadium in Miami, Florida....
on October 14, 2006, Thomas defended his alma mater
Alma mater
Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...
. Besides defending the Miami players, he expressed a desire to join the fight himself:
Thomas later claimed he was joking about his comments, but two days after this incident, Comcast Sports Southeast
Comcast Sports Southeast/Charter Sports Southeast
Comcast Sports Southeast/Charter Sports Southeast is a cable regional sports network based in Atlanta, Georgia, and serving 6 million cable subscribers across twelve U.S. states. It is a joint venture between Comcast and Charter Communications, and appears on many of the two companies' cable...
fired him.
On the October 17, 2006 episode of Fox News Channel's
Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel , often called Fox News, is a cable and satellite television news channel owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of News Corporation...
Hannity & Colmes
Hannity & Colmes
Hannity & Colmes was a live television show on Fox News Channel in the United States, hosted by Sean Hannity and Alan Colmes, who respectively presented a conservative and liberal perspective. The series premiered on October 6, 1996, and the final episode aired on January 9, 2009. It was the...
, Thomas said he got caught up in the moment and made a mistake. However, he said he did not blame Comcast for firing him.
Later, a message from Thomas was allegedly posted to the Miami discussion board on scout.com. He claimed that he had been taken aside earlier in the year and told he needed to be "more pro-UM" as his criticism of the struggling team had been taken rather hard by the players. He dismissed concerns that he was serious when he said he wished he could have gone down on the field and joined in ("I'm 36 years old, what the hell would I have accomplished?") and said "If that was during my tenure we would have invited FIU to Tamiami Park
Tamiami Park
Tamiami Park is a public urban park in metropolitan Miami, just south of the Modesto Maidique campus of Florida International University.-Background:...
to get it on". He was not, he said, hired to be neutral.