Ralph Gary "Rocky" Thompson (born November 8, 1947) is a former American football player for the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

in the National Football League (NFL). Thompson, a running back/ wide receiver, played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Hartnell College Hartnell College is a public community college in Salinas, California. Established in 1920 as Salinas Junior College, Hartnell is one of 115 schools that constitute the California Community Colleges, one of the three higher education systems i ...

and

West Texas State West Texas A&M University (WTAMU or WT) is a public university in Canyon, Texas. It is the northernmost campus of the Texas A&M University System and accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). It was established on Se ...

, 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 The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been conteste ...

in 1970 with a time of 10.1 seconds, and representing Bermuda, he reached the final of the 100 metres at the

1970 British Commonwealth Games The 1970 British Commonwealth Games (Scottish Gaelic: Geamannan a 'Cho-fhlaitheis Bhreatainn 1970) were held in Edinburgh, Scotland, from 16 to 25 July 1970. This was the first time the name British Commonwealth Games was adopted, the first tim ...

, finishing sixth. The Giants drafted Thompson in the first round of the

1971 NFL Draft The 1971 National Football League draft was held January 28–29, 1971, at the Belmont Plaza Hotel in New York City, New York. The Boston Patriots, who did not officially change their name to New England Patriots until after the draft, used th ...

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. The Giants subsequently released Thompson before the start of the 1974 season. 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.

References

Living people 1947 births People from Paget Parish American football running backs American football wide receivers Bermudian players of American football Bermudian male sprinters West Texas A&M Buffaloes football players New York Giants players Commonwealth Games competitors for Bermuda Athletes (track and field) at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games Junior college men's track and field athletes in the United States Bermudian expatriate sportspeople in the United States {{runningback-1940s-stub