Sidney Thornton, NSU Hall of Famer, dies at the age of 68

All- American, All-Louisiana choice and a four year starter at NSU. Sidney was a second round draft choice of the Pittsburgh Steelers and was team captain. He played on two Super Bowl Championships teams with Pittsburgh as the Steelers captured consecutive titles in 1978 and 1979. Sidney played a total of seven years of professional football and was inducted into the NSU Hall of Fame in 1986.

Sidney Thornton was a dominant Demon running back whose name still dots the record books. Sidney tied school marks for most points in a game with 24 and holds the season record for most rushing touchdowns with 12 in 1976. At the time of Sidney’s induction he was third on the all time list for points scored in a season 72 in 1976, fourth in most points scored with 158, second in career rushing attempts with 573, second in net yards rushing with 2,662, and fifth highest season rushing total with 945 yards in 1976. He was honored by his teammates as MVP following both his junior and senior seasons.  In 1976 Sidney was chosen as the MVP in the Blue-Gray game.