Pro Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning and his wife are honoring his former Denver Broncos teammate Demaryius Thomas by setting up a scholarship in his name at Georgia Tech.
On Wednesday, the Mannings announced that through their PeyBack Foundation, they were establishing the Demaryius A. Thomas Scholarship Endowment.
The foundation said academic scholarships to attend the university would be provided to incoming freshmen from Laurens County, where Thomas was born and raised, or surrounding areas.
“Demaryius Thomas was an incredibly talented and unselfish teammate, but more importantly, he was a special person and friend,” Peyton Manning said. “My family and I miss him dearly, and we wanted to honor D.T.’s memory by partnering the PeyBack Foundation with Georgia Tech to establish the Demaryius A. Thomas Scholarship Endowment.
Georgia Tech athletics also announced that every Aug. 8, they will honor the former player, and it'll be known as Demaryius Thomas Day.
Thomas played at Georgia Tech from 2006-09 before being picked 22nd overall by the Broncos in the 2010 Draft.
Retiring in 2019, Thomas finished his NFL career with 724 receptions for 9,763 yards and 63 touchdowns.
According to the Associated Press, Thomas died from an apparent seizure at his home near Atlanta.
He was 33.
