Thunder Collins, Former Nebraska RB, Convicted of First-Degree Murder!!!

Nearly three years ago to the day, former Nebraska I-back Thunder Collins finally seemed to have his troubled life going in the right direction. He had returned to Lincoln, Neb., in August 2006 to finish the degree in sociology he was just a semester short of completing. But the triumphant return to the city of some of his greatest exploits didn't last long as Collins soon found trouble again and it all culminated Monday when he was found guilty of first-degree murder and assault charges.

Collins, who starred for the Cornhuskers from 2000-02, was found guilty of murdering suspected drug dealer Timothy Thomas last September. Another man, Marshall Turner, was also left critically injured in the shooting. A jury in Douglas County began deliberating Friday and came back Monday afternoon with a guilty verdict on the most serious of the charges. Collins received a mandatory life sentence and faces up to 170 years on the remaining charges.

Prosecutors had wanted Collins to be found guilty of first-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder, first-degree assault and three counts of weapons charges, according to a story that appeared in the Omaha World-Herald. Collins, however, has maintained his innocence throughout the trial and reiterated his position in a post-verdict interview. He said someone shot and killed the suspected drug dealer, but Collins has declined to identify the real shooter. "The killer is still free right now," he told the World-Herald. "I'm the only one being punished. I didn't have a gun."

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