ENGLEWOOD, Colorado — Hall of Famer quarterback Peyton Manning has established a scholarship fund at Georgia Tech to honor his friend and former teammate Demaryius Thomas.
Thomas, a former Georgia Tech wide receiver and native of Georgia, died December 9 at the age of 33.
The Demaryius Thomas Scholarship Endowment, established by Manning’s PeyBack Foundation, provides academic scholarships to freshman students from Laurens County, Georgia, where Thomas was born and raised, or surrounding communities who demonstrate significant financial need and academic achievement. Full or partial scholarships are awarded annually, and students receive the scholarships until they graduate from Georgia Tech.
“Demaryius Thomas was an incredibly talented and selfless teammate, but more importantly, he was a special person and friend,” Manning said in a statement Wednesday. “My family and I miss him dearly, and we wanted to honor DT’s memory by partnering the PeyBack Foundation with Georgia Tech to establish the Demaryius A. Thomas Scholarship Endowment.
“An important part of Demaryius’ legacy was the way he inspired the next generation to pursue their dreams with the same tenacity and determination that characterized him. Through this scholarship to Georgia Tech, Demaryius will have a lasting impact on the deserving youth of his hometown who can follow in his footsteps and achieve great things in life.”
Georgia Tech also announced that August 8th is recognized as Demaryius Thomas Day each year; Thomas’ uniform number at the school was number 8. The scholarship holder is also awarded on this day.
Yellow Jackets players will also wear a No. 8 badge on their helmets in the 2022 season.
“We are grateful to Peyton and Ashley Manning and the PeyBack Foundation for establishing the Demaryius Thomas Scholarship,” Georgia Tech athletic director Todd Stansbury said in a statement. “Thanks to your generous contribution, Demaryius’ legacy will be carried on by Georgia Tech students in the Laurens County and area for years to come, and his memory will be celebrated each year during our 8/8 Day Recognitions.”
Thomas was a first-round pick for the Denver Broncos in the 2010 NFL Draft and spent nine seasons with the team, including all four of Manning’s seasons at Denver. He finished his career as the Broncos’ second-best receiver (9,055 yards), behind only Rod Smith, and is third in catches history (655) behind Smith and Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe.
With Manning’s arrival to the Broncos in 2012, Thomas had at least 90 receptions and 1,300 yards in four straight seasons, joining Hall of Famers Marvin Harrison and Jerry Rice and former Rams wide receiver Torry Holt as the only players who these achieved totals over four consecutive seasons.
In the Broncos’ record-breaking 2013 season, when Denver posted a season-record 606 points and Manning set NFL records for passing yards (5,477) and touchdowns (55), Thomas finished with a career-best 14 touchdowns. Thomas finished the next season with a career-best 1,619 yards.
Overall, Thomas set 16 Broncos franchise records, including his 1,619-yard season and 33 career 100-yard games.
Thomas played a total of 10 seasons for the Broncos, Houston Texans and New York Jets and finished his NFL career with 724 catches for 9,763 yards and 63 touchdowns.
At Georgia Tech, Thomas was a 2009 first-team All-ACC selection and officially recorded 113 receptions for 2,135 yards and 13 touchdowns in three seasons.