Ricky Thomas Jr. is entering his sixth season with the Jaguars and fourth as college scout responsible for the Southeast region. He was originally hired in July 2020 as a scouting assistant and promoted to NFS combine scout in June 2021.
Thomas played football at the University of Nevada-Reno for three seasons (2015-17), and was a grad transfer at Norfolk State, where he played for two seasons (2018-19). He received his bachelor's in journalism from the University of Nevada-Reno and his master's in media communications from Norfolk State.
In his final season at Norfolk State in 2019, Thomas was named a semi-finalist for the William V. Campbell trophy. The award recognizes an individual as the absolute best football scholar-athlete in the nation for his combined academic success, football performance and exemplary leadership.
Thomas' father, Ricky, coached in the NFL and collegiately from 1988 to 2018. His stops in the NFL included the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Indianapolis Colts. Thomas Jr. is originally from Indianapolis, Ind.
