Alonzo "Skip" Thomas (February 7, 1950 – July 24, 2011), nicknamed "Dr. Death", was an American football cornerback who played in the National Football League (NFL). College career Thomas was awarded a scholarship to play football at Arizona Western Junior College. Then, Thomas played college football at the University of Southern California. Professional career Thomas played for the Oakland Raiders for the entire duration of his professional football career between 1972 and 1977. He had back-to-back six-interception seasons in 1974 and 1975. Although it is commonly believed that his fierce tackling got him the nickname "Doctor Death," the truth (per John Madden's book Hey, Wait a Minute (I Wrote A Book!)) is that Hall of Fame lineman Bob "Boomer" Brown, when he first met him, thought that he looked like the cartoon character "Dr. Death," and the moniker stuck. Thomas died of a heart attack on July 24, 2011. He was 61. References 1950 births 2011 deaths American football cornerbacks Arizona Western Matadors football players Oakland Raiders players People from Higginsville, Missouri Players of American football from Missouri Sportspeople from the Kansas City metropolitan area USC Trojans football players