Blair Lamar Thomas (born October 7, 1967) is a former professional American football running back in the National Football League for the New York Jets, New England Patriots, Dallas Cowboys, Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers. He played college football at Penn State University. Early years Thomas was an all-state football player at Frankford High School in Philadelphia. In three seasons at Frankford, he rushed for 3,941 yards and tied a Public League career record with 59 touchdowns. College career Thomas accepted a football scholarship from Penn State University. He was a backup on the 1986 National Championship team, tallying 504 yards on 60 carries and 5 touchdowns. In 1987, he became a starter as a junior for head coach Joe Paterno, posting 1,414 yards on 268 carries and 11 touchdowns. In 1988, he was lost for the season with a serious right knee injury. As a senior returning from reconstructive knee surgery, he averaged just 19 carries in the first 6 games, but ended strong by rushing for over 100-yards in six straight games, while registering 1,341 yards on 264 carries and 5 touchdowns. In the Holiday Bowl against Brigham Young, he rushed for a bowl record 186 yards on 35 carries, receiving Most Valuable Player honors. He was also named the MVP in the Senior Bowl after rushing for 137 yards on only 11 carries. He finished second on the Nittany Lions’s all-time rushing list with 3,301 yards and 21 touchdowns, just 97 yards shy of the Penn State record set by Curt Warner. He averaged 5.5 yards per carry, . He was also the first player in school history to rush for more than 1,300 yards in two seasons (1987, 1989). He earned his Bachelor of Science in recreation and parks management at Penn State University in 1989. In 2011, he was inducted into the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame. Professional career Thomas was selected by the New York Jets in the first round (second overall) of the 1990 NFL Draft and was given the number 32, which no Jet had worn since the retirement of Emerson Boozer in 1975, with the expectation of developing into a great player. As a rookie, he was used as part of a four-man running back rotation that included Freeman McNeil, Johnny Hector and Brad Baxter. He posted 620 yards on only 123 carries, leading the NFL rookies in yards-per-carry (5 yards)