Embattled cornerback Derrick Thomas has left the Penn State football team for personal reasons, coach Bill O’Brien announced through a team spokesman Friday.
Thomas, a redshirt junior, had been locked in a position battle with sophomore Adrian Amos for the second starting cornerback spot opposite senior Stephon Morris entering training camp.
Now, it looks like Amos, who was also getting a look a safety in the spring, will get the nod heading into camp, which starts Aug. 6.
Thomas’s departure is the third within a month and the second at cornerback, leaving the secondary even more thin.
He was cited for disorderly conduct following a Feb. 28 fight in State College last year. He also previously had a string of academic issues that kept him in former coach Joe Paterno’s dog house.
O’Brien had said every player would be given a clean slate under his regime, but no specific reason was given for Thomas leaving the program.
Others off the team since O’Brien was named head coach: defensive end Shawn Oakman (discipline), cornerback Curtis Drake (academics) and wide receiver Devon Smith (personal reasons).
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