RICHMOND, Va. -- He embraces his Native American culture because it matters to him. Even as he tries to make a team with a nickname some Native Americans despise.
When he was growing up, Kendal Thompson and his family attended religious ceremonies and powwows, weekendlong celebrations complete with fireworks and stories of his ancestors. He went through a naming ceremony a year ago, which is why he’s also known as Little Wolf. And he's had his mom perform a ritual in which she fans him with smoke, which is meant to protect him from danger or relieve turmoil while reminding him of the past.
Thompson is one-quarter Native American, but he's fully committed to his heritage as part of the Kiowa tribe.
“I try to wear it on my sleeve,” Thompson said.
He also happens to be a receiver competing for a roster spot with the Washington Redskins, a team with a controversial nickname.
But that fight isn’t for Thompson. His goal is to show that he can convert from being a quarterback at Utah to a receiver in the NFL.
“I grew up in a sports family,” said Thompson, whose father, Charles, played at Oklahoma and in the Canadian Football League. “Even in my Native American heritage, there’s never been any offense taken to the name of any of the sports teams, the Indians, the Redskins. It’s a part of our American history. We used to go to a powwow in Oklahoma City called Red Earth. So it just depends who you talk to, whether they take offense or not. As far as my family and heritage, we don’t take offense to that. It was never a topic.”
His mother, Kori Kaubin, agreed that “it was never an issue; it’s kind of silly,” and pointed out that her dad, a full-blooded Kiowa, was a football coach at Capitol Hill High School in Oklahoma. The school’s nickname (until last year): the Redskins.
Washington signed Thompson the day it opened training camp -- four other receivers worked out that day. Some in the organization found out about his Native American background after he signed, but it’s not something they’ve tried to either promote -- as a way to help with the name issue -- or hide.
Redskins coach Jay Gruden had no clue about Thompson's background until asked about it Thursday.
“I didn’t even know that, to be honest with you,” Gruden said. “We needed more receivers. He showed in the workouts that he had true receiver instincts, he’s able to run routes naturally and he has great hands. He’s picked up the offense easily.”
But Thompson understands the spot he’s in as a Native American. He doesn’t dismiss others' opinions; he just has a different one.
“Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and for the Native Americans who do take offense to it, they have their right to feel that way,” Thompson said. “As far as my family and how I was raised, we don’t take offense to it. I guess it just depends on your background.”
Thompson’s mother is half Native American and half white. Her father, Norman Kaubin, who died in 2003, was 100 percent Kiowa. Thompson was close to him when he was growing up. Thompson and his mother sometimes lived with Norman Kaubin while Thompson's dad, who is African-American, chased his football dream in Canada and also NFL Europe.
Thompson said his family would attend as many as five powwows a year, though sometimes it was difficult. He was a three-sport athlete who played baseball in the summers, and schedules would conflict. But even during busy periods, his heritage -- the religious aspects, the rituals, the traditional dances -- remained important. And his roots are deep: Two 19th-century chiefs, Satanta and Ahpeahtone, are his ancestors.
Kori Kaubin said the chiefs were fighters and warriors, traits they passed down to later generations. “Kendal has a very strong inner mindset,” she said. “He’s fearless. … He’s comfortable in his own skin, very determined. He has a warrior mindset.”
Thompson must use those traits -- plus his elusiveness and hand-eye coordination -- to make the NFL after having played quarterback since age 7. He played 13 games there in college with Oklahoma and Utah. Now he must learn a new position and an NFL offense, but he’s usually one of the last Redskins off the field, sticking around for more work. The only time he’d played receiver before is in Utah’s bowl game against Brigham Young, when he caught one pass for 8 yards.
“The big thing for me is upside,” he said, “I can use my quarterback background as far as reading zones and coverages. As I get more comfortable in the offense, that’ll show up more and more.”
The Redskins are deep at receiver, making it tough to earn a spot. But Thompson wants to open eyes, here or elsewhere. Meanwhile, he said, he wants to represent his Kiowa heritage. The last known Native American to play for Washington was tackle Sean Locklear in 2011.
“A lot of my Native American family and friends thought it coincidental and a cool deal that I signed with the Redskins and it’s kind of ironic,” Thompson said. “It’s definitely something I take pride in and I definitely embrace my Native American culture, but mostly I’m here to play football.”
