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{{Short description|American football player (born 1947)}}
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{{Infobox NFL player
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
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|name=Rocky Thompson
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{{Infobox NFL biography
|image=
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| name = Rocky Thompson
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|caption=
| image =
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|position=[[Running back]]
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| caption =
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|number=22
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| position = [[Running back]]
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|birth_date={{birth date and age|1947|11|8}}
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| number = 22
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|birth_place=[[Bermuda]]
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| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1947|11|8}}
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|death_date=
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| birth_place = [[Paget, Bermuda]]
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|draftyear=1971
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| death_date =
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|draftround=1
| height_ft = 5
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|draftpick=18
| weight_lb = 200
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|afldraftyear=
| height_in = 11
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|afldraftround=
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| draftyear = 1971
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|afldraftpick=
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| draftround = 1
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|suppdraftyear=
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| draftpick = 18
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|suppdraftround=
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| afldraftyear =
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|undraftedyear=
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| afldraftround =
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|college=[[West Texas A&M Buffaloes football|West Texas State]]
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| afldraftpick =
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|pastteams=
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| suppdraftyear =
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| suppdraftround =
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| undraftedyear =
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| college = [[West Texas A&M Buffaloes football|West Texas State]]
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| pastteams =
* [[New York Giants]] ({{NFL Year|1971|1973}})
* [[New York Giants]] ({{NFL Year|1971|1973}})
|statlabel1= Rushing attempts-yards
| statlabel1 = Rushing attempts-yards
|statvalue1=68-217
| statvalue1 = 68-217
|statlabel2= [[Reception (American football)|Receptions]]-yards
| statlabel2 = [[Reception (American football)|Receptions]]-yards
|statvalue2=16-85
| statvalue2 = 16-85
|statlabel3= [[Touchdown]]s
| statlabel3 = [[Touchdown]]s
|statvalue3=3
| statvalue3 = 3
| pfr = ThomRo03
|nfl=THO642572
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'''Ralph Gary "Rocky" Symonds-Thompson''' (born November 8, 1947) is a former [[American football]] player for the [[New York Giants]] in the [[National Football League]].
'''Ralph Gary "Rocky" Thompson''' (born November 8, 1947) is a former [[American football]] player for the [[New York Giants]] in the [[National Football League]] (NFL).


Thompson, a [[running back]]/[[wide receiver]], played [[college football]] at [[Hartnell Community College]] and [[West Texas A&M University|West Texas State]], where he was the roommate of future [[Dallas Cowboys]] star [[Duane Thomas]]. Thompson was a world-class [[Sprint (running)|sprinter]] who won the [[AAA Championships]] [[100 metres]] in 1970 with a time of 10.1 seconds.<ref>[https://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=FA0915FD3D5F107B93CBAB178AD85F458785F9 Leonard Koppett, "Thompson, Runner from West Texas, is Webster's Pick", New York Times, January 29, 1971 (subscription required)]</ref> Representing [[Bermuda]], he reached the final of the 100 metres at the [[1970 British Commonwealth Games]], finishing sixth.
Thompson, a [[running back]]/[[wide receiver]], played [[college football]] at [[Hartnell College]] and [[West Texas A&M University|West Texas State]], where he was the roommate of future [[Dallas Cowboys]] star [[Duane Thomas]]. Thompson was a world-class [[Sprint (running)|sprinter]] who won the [[AAA Championships]] [[100 metres]] in 1970 with a time of 10.1 seconds,<ref>[https://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=FA0915FD3D5F107B93CBAB178AD85F458785F9 Leonard Koppett, "Thompson, Runner from West Texas, is Webster's Pick", New York Times, January 29, 1971 (subscription required)]</ref> and representing [[Bermuda]], he reached the final of the 100 metres at the [[1970 British Commonwealth Games]], finishing sixth.


The Giants drafted Thompson in the first round of the [[1971 NFL Draft]] with the 18th overall selection. He appeared in all 28 regular-season games for the Giants in 1971 and 1972, primarily as a [[kickoff returner]], but his NFL career went sour, only scoring three touchdowns in his career.<ref>[http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=THOMPROC01 Rocky Thompson statistics at databasefootball.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100212135946/http://databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=THOMPROC01 |date=2010-02-12 }}</ref> The Giants released Thompson before the start of the 1974 season.<ref>[https://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=FB0C12FA3F59137B93C3A81782D85F408785F9 "Giants cut Randy Johnson, Evans and Thompson", New York Times, Sept. 11, 1974]</ref> [[Deadspin]] ranked Thompson as the 7th worst NFL player of all time noting "Shortly after Thompson was selected in the first round of the 1971 draft out of West Texas State, The New York Times reported that ''Rocky Thompson … is listed in Bermuda and in official Brit track records as Ralph Gary Symonds.'' Neither Rocky nor Ralph could muster more than three career touchdowns."<ref>[http://deadspin.com/5690560/the-bottom-100-the-worst-players-in-nfl-history-part-2 The Bottom 100: The Worst Players in NFL History]. Deadspin. Retrieved August 14, 2014.</ref>
The Giants drafted Thompson in the first round of the [[1971 NFL draft]] with the 18th overall selection. He appeared in all 28 regular-season games for the Giants in 1971 and 1972, primarily as a [[kickoff returner]], but his NFL career was ended by a severe neck injury during play.<ref>[http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=THOMPROC01 Rocky Thompson statistics at databasefootball.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100212135946/http://databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=THOMPROC01 |date=2010-02-12}}</ref> The Giants subsequently released Thompson before the start of the 1974 season.<ref>[https://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=FB0C12FA3F59137B93C3A81782D85F408785F9 "Giants cut Randy Johnson, Evans and Thompson", New York Times, Sept. 11, 1974]</ref>

Shortly after Thompson was selected in the first round of the 1971 draft out of West Texas State, The New York Times reported that Rocky Thompson is listed in Bermuda and in official Brit track records as Ralph Gary Symonds. Thompson explained that his mother's maiden name was Symonds but when she remarried he took his stepfather's name of "Thompson." But he competed at track under his mother's maiden name, and later as Rocky Thompson-Symonds, since his mother had also ran track for Bermuda.<ref>{{cite news|via=newspapers.com|accessdate=2022-08-21|newspaper=Dayton Daily News|title=Mystery about Giants' No. 1 pick cleared up|author=Amdur, Neil|date=February 5, 1971|page=21|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/108024332/dayton-daily-news/}}</ref>


==References==
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}


{{1971 NFL Draft}}
{{GiantsFirstPick}}
{{GiantsFirstPick}}
{{Giants1971DraftPicks}}



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[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games]]
[[Category:Junior college men's track and field athletes in the United States]]
[[Category:Junior college men's track and field athletes in the United States]]
[[Category:Bermudian expatriates in the United States]]
[[Category:Bermudian expatriate sportspeople in the United States]]




Latest revision as of 18:04, 8 August 2024

Rocky Thompson
No. 22
Position:Running back
Personal information
Born: (1947-11-08) November 8, 1947 (age 76)
Paget, Bermuda
Height:5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight:200 lb (91 kg)
Career information
College:West Texas State
NFL draft:1971 / round: 1 / pick: 18
Career history
Career NFL statistics
Rushing attempts-yards:68-217
Receptions-yards:16-85
Touchdowns:3
Player stats at PFR

Ralph Gary "Rocky" Thompson (born November 8, 1947) is a former American football player for the New York Giants in the National Football League (NFL).

Thompson, a running back/wide receiver, played college football at Hartnell College and West Texas State, where he was the roommate of future Dallas Cowboys star Duane Thomas. Thompson was a world-class sprinter who won the AAA Championships 100 metres in 1970 with a time of 10.1 seconds,[1] and representing Bermuda, he reached the final of the 100 metres at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games, finishing sixth.

The Giants drafted Thompson in the first round of the 1971 NFL draft with the 18th overall selection. He appeared in all 28 regular-season games for the Giants in 1971 and 1972, primarily as a kickoff returner, but his NFL career was ended by a severe neck injury during play.[2] The Giants subsequently released Thompson before the start of the 1974 season.[3]

Shortly after Thompson was selected in the first round of the 1971 draft out of West Texas State, The New York Times reported that Rocky Thompson is listed in Bermuda and in official Brit track records as Ralph Gary Symonds. Thompson explained that his mother's maiden name was Symonds but when she remarried he took his stepfather's name of "Thompson." But he competed at track under his mother's maiden name, and later as Rocky Thompson-Symonds, since his mother had also ran track for Bermuda.[4]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Leonard Koppett, "Thompson, Runner from West Texas, is Webster's Pick", New York Times, January 29, 1971 (subscription required)
  2. ^ Rocky Thompson statistics at databasefootball.com Archived 2010-02-12 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ "Giants cut Randy Johnson, Evans and Thompson", New York Times, Sept. 11, 1974
  4. ^ Amdur, Neil (5 February 1971). "Mystery about Giants' No. 1 pick cleared up". Dayton Daily News. p. 21. Retrieved 21 August 2022 – via newspapers.com.


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