Top WR Jeff Thomas dismissed from Miami Hurricanes football team
Rumors have been swirling about the Miami Hurricanes’ gifted wide receiver Jeff Thomas. He missed practice on Tuesday and on Wednesday, and a Miami spokesman told the South Florida Sun Sentinel that Thomas wasn’t at practice due to “personal reasons.” Thomas was still considered part of the team as recently as Wednesday afternoon.
But he’s a member of the team no longer. Miami announced on Wednesday that it had dismissed Thomas from the Hurricanes football team. The school released a statement about Thomas from coach Mark Richt.
“We have high standards for excellence, for conduct and for the commitment to team for all of the young men who wear our uniform, and we will not waver from those standards. We wish Jeff the very best as he moves forward in his journey.”
The Athletic reported that Thomas’ departure was due to a falling out with the coaching staff. He met with coaches at Miami’s facilities on Wednesday morning, and went into the meeting expecting to be disciplined. However, he left the meeting angry. Just a few hours later, his time as a Hurricane was over. According to a source that spoke to the Miami Herald, Thomas has “spoken about the possibility of transferring to Illinois.”
Thomas said he was not kicked off the team, but came to a mutual decision with Richt that he would leave the program.
— Jeff Thomas (@theregoes4) November 22, 2018
Thomas is an electrifying receiver, a bright spot for a team that’s struggled on offense amidst a disappointing 6-5 season. He led the team with 35 catches for 563 yards, and delivered a season-highlight play on Saturday with a 51-yard punt return against Virginia Tech that went for a touchdown. But Thomas didn’t start that game — according to the Herald, Richt was attempting to give Thomas some “tough love,” benching him for failing to handle off-the-field business.
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Liz Roscher is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at lizroscher@yahoo.com or follow her on Twitter at @lizroscher.
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