In an interview during the 2010 season, then-senior wide receiver Aldrick Robinson said his heir apparent as the SMU Mustangs' top deep threat might well be freshman Der'Rikk Thompson. That he would single out Thompson was not a surprise, as many teammates had commented about how the freshman from Troup, Texas ran. What was surprising was what Robinson said next.

"He's faster than I was as a freshman," Robinson said, "and by the time he graduates, he'll be faster than I am now."

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Coming from most players, the statement would hardly register. But if Robinson isn't the fastest player since football resumed at SMU in 1989, he definitely is on the short list with players like Brian Berry, Larry Wilson, Bryan McCann, Trey Griffin, Johnnie Freeman and a few others.

When told that several teammates identified him as the fastest player on the current roster, Thompson smiled, but declined to claim the title. Instead, he merely allowed that he is “one of the fastest” Ponies, on a list that he said also includes players like wide receiver Keenan Holman, cornerback Chris Parks, safety Chris Banjo, cornerback Kenneth Acker and incoming freshman cornerback Daren Kitchen.

Thompson also quickly dismissed the idea that his speed will allow him to “replace” Robinson as the Mustangs’ resident deep threat.

“I guess we’re kind of similar players,” Thompson said. “People have told me I’m kind of smooth, but Al is really smooth. He’s not just a fast guy — he’s a great player. He knows when to run fast and when to run not so fast, and he runs under control and with great balance.

"He's such a good player, and being at the same position, I look up to him. I watched him a lot, and tried to pick up how he does things. He's a great player to learn from.”

Learning when to take his foot off the gas is something Thompson said he, like many young receivers who are blessed with exceptional speed, have to force themselves to learn.

“In high school, we ran the Power-I offense, so receivers didn’t have a lot of different routes,” he said. “I ran a wheel route, a deep post and fade route — that’s about it. I played running back, too.

“In this offense, there are a lot more routes, and I had to learn how to run them better, like Al did. I’m still learning.”

Robinson said that when Thompson arrived at SMU last summer, he was a raw, unfinished product. He said that while Thompson, like any freshman, still has room for significant improvement, his development over his first year at SMU has been considerable.

“All the tools are there,” Robinson said. “He works really hard. You can tell he has worked on his route running.

“I think the biggest thing with him is his confidence. He has always had the speed, but as a receiver, you have to build up a sense of confidence, a sense that, ‘I’m one of the best out there and I deserve to be on the field.’”

Thompson echoed Robinson’s assessment, saying the biggest difference he sees in himself from his arrival at SMU a year ago to now is in his confidence.

“I’m more comfortable with the offense,” he said. “I know more of the plays, and I know why we do the things we do. There is a lot of new terminology I had to learn, and a lot of different routes I had never run.

“When I got here, I was coming from a 2A high school to Div. I, and I struggled a little with my confidence. I didn’t think I could do it. But my teammates didn’t let me think that way. I had guys like Chris Banjo, Kelvin Beachum, Kyle Padron and Keenan Holman telling me I had the ability to be better than I thought. That — their confidence in me — gave me a little spark of momentum.”

That momentum carried into the Ponies’ spring workouts. With Terrance Wilkerson sitting out the spring to concentrate on his academics, Thompson and fellow freshman Steve Nelson were splitting time with the first-team offense at Robinson’s old position, but he declined to speculate about his role in 2011. He did say, however, that the knee injuries that cost him virtually his entire senior season in high school are a thing of the past.

“I don’t want to look too far ahead,” Thompson said. “I’m a pretty humble person, and right now, I’m just trying to get better every day.

“I get little aches and pains (in the knee) every now and then, but I feel I could play a full game right now if I get the chance. I feel fine.”