In 1895, he took over as Nebraska's head football coach, posting a 6–3 record. In 1897, Thomas was the head football coach at Nebraska Wesleyan University. From 1901 to 1902, he served as the head football coach at Arkansas, where he compiled a 9–8 record.
Charles Ladd Thomas (October 21, 1871 – September 19, 1920) was an American college football player and coach and newspaper reporter and editor. A native of Omaha, Nebraska, Thomas enrolled at the University of Michigan, where he played at the guard position for the Michigan Wolverines football teams of 1891 and 1892. After graduating from Michigan in 1893, Thomas returned to Nebraska, where he served as an assistant football coach at the University of Nebraska under Frank Crawford in 1893 and 1894.