Former Georgia football defensive linemen Trenton Thompson is still pursuing a football career.
After seeing the reports that former Georgia linebacker Davin Bellamy was re-signed to the playoff-bound Houston Texans practice squad this week, I was wondering what his former Bulldog teammate and fellow 2018 free agent Trenton Thompson was doing.
Thompson was the USA Today Defensive Player of Year coming out of Albany (GA) Westover Comprehensive High School in 2014. The previous year, he was Rivals’ Junior of the Year. He was the highest rated recruit in the country and the subject of a ferocious recruiting battle among Auburn, Alabama and Georgia. The centerpiece of Mark Richt’s class that year, the 6’4″, 280-pound defensive lineman had stardom written all over him and the expectations were sky high.
Thompson was projected as a game changer and a double-team necessity. During his freshman year, he played sparingly during the first four games, recording 7 total tackles including a half a sack. He made his first start for the Bulldogs in a week 5 loss to No. 13 Alabama, where he recorded four total tackles. Thompson finished his true freshman year with 25 tackles (8 of which were solo), 2.5 tackles for a loss and half a sack. Several nagging injuries began taking their toll on Thompson toward the end of the season, as he dealt with two bad ankles. His numbers may not have been off the charts, but as a true freshman getting that much playing time in the SEC as a defensive lineman, was quite the feat. Pro Football Focus listed him as the nation’s best true freshman on the interior defensive line.
Thompson’s sophomore year, the defensive tackle returned healthy and appeared in all 13 games with seven starts, leading the Bulldogs interior defensive linemen with 56 tackles, nine tackles for a loss and 5 sacks. After that performance, the expectations for Thompson’s junior season were extremely high but injuries prevented him from reaching his full potential.
He had off-season surgery to repair a torn labrum in his shoulder and withdrew from the spring semester. He rehabbed his injury and appeared at spring practice but did not participate in any drills. During his junior season, he suffered two sprained MCL ligament injuries, causing him to miss two games and rendering him less effective. He finished the season with 38 tackles and 3.5 tackles for a loss in 13 games.
Unexpectedly, Thompson decided to forgo his senior year and enter the 2018 draft. Seven rounds came and went and the quiet man from south Georgia never heard his name called. It was a shame that Thompson could not return to Athens and play his senior year. But due to draconian NCAA rules, which allow scholarship basketball players to test the NBA (provided they do not hire an agent) and return to school if not drafted, college football does not allow that option.
The siren song of the NFL is filled with false promise. A record 106 underclassmen entered the draft that year and 33% of them did not get drafted, including Georgia teammate Davin Bellamy. Thompson became the first No. 1 overall recruiting prospect to go undrafted.
Thompson signed as a free agent with the Cleveland Browns in 2018 but was waived before the preseason. He joined the Arizona Hotshots of the Alliance of American Football for its inaugural season. In his first game, a four-tackle performance in a 38-22 win, Pro Football Focus announced a Team of the Week, and Thompson made the list.
After the Alliance of American Football’s financial collapse during its first season, Thompson joined the Washington Valor of the Arena Football League. In June 2019, he travelled north of the border and signed with the Canadian Football League’s Edmonton Eskimos but was released shortly thereafter.
In October 2019, Thompson was drafted by the Houston Roughnecks of the new XFL. The eight-team XFL will play a 10-week regular-season schedule. The inaugral season begins February 8, 2020. The league appears to be well funded by the World Wrestling Federation ownership group and all games will be nationally televised by ABC/ESPN and FOX Sports. Thompson was the 6th defensive lineman taken in the draft out of a pool of 80. He should expect a minimum annual salary of $65,000 and could reach $120,000 with incentives.
(As a side note, former Georgia Bulldog defensive backs Corey Moore and Damian Swann, quarterback Aaron Murray and long snapper Nick Moore signed with Tampa Bay and defensive tackle Toby Johnson signed with New York).
Trenton Thompson was always quiet, unassuming and respectful. His demeanor may not be protoypical of a professional defensive lineman, but his athletic ability, past on-the-field performances and the continued pursuit of his professional dreams speak volumes of his desire and drive to be successful. It has been unfortunate that injuries interfered with his college career and he was bypassed in the NFL draft. After pursuing his craft across two countries and five leagues since leaving Athens, Thompson’s goal is to show someone in the NFL that he has the talent to compete on the big stage. DawgNation is pulling for ’78’ to become a force in the XFL, remain healthy and to continue to enjoy his journey.
