Thomas Austin ( American football ) Thomas Austin ( born November 14 , 1986 ) is an American football center for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League . He was signed by the Minnesota Vikings as an undrafted free agent in 2010 . He played college football at Clemson . He has also been a member of the New England Patriots . Early years . Austin attended Camden High School in Camden , South Carolina , where he played every position along the offensive line . He was a four - year letterman in football , and played on the AAA state title team as a freshman offensive tackle . He was an all - county , all - region , and all - area selection as a junior and senior . As a senior , he was named the top offensive lineman in South Carolina by " The State . " He was also named to all - state teams by " The State , " " High School Sports Report , " and SCVarsity . com . He was the upstate Lineman of the Year as a senior , and a Shrine Bowl starter at offensive tackle . Rivals . com rated him among the top ten Shrine Bowl players , and as the No . 20 offensive guard in the nation and the ninth best prospect in South Carolina . He was also a three - year letterman in wrestling in high school , posting a 66 - 4 career record . He won the AAA state title as a junior and was a state finalist and North / South All - Star as a senior . College career . Austin chose to attend Clemson University over Maryland , Penn State , South Carolina , Vanderbilt , and Wake Forest . He redshirt ed as a freshman in 2005 and was named the offensive scout team player of the year by the Clemson coaching staff . In 2006 , Austin played 177 snaps , posting 22 knockdown blocks and three intimidation blocks . As a sophomore in 2007 , he started 12 games , including four at right guard and eight at center . He led the team in knockdown blocks with 90 and in offensive snaps with 780 . He was twice named Atlantic Coast Conference Offensive Lineman of the Week and was an honorable mention sophomore All - American by CollegeFootballNews . com . In 2008 , as a junior , Austin started 13 games and was three times named ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week , while leading his team with 98 knockdown blocks . He was named to the All - ACC second team as a center after the season . In 2009 , Austin started every game again as a senior co - captain , and was named to the All - ACC second team for a second straight season , this time as a guard . He was also named a third team All - American by " Sporting News , " and led his team with 112 knockdown blocks in 2009 . Professional career . Minnesota Vikings . After going undrafted in the 2010 NFL Draft , Austin signed with the Minnesota Vikings on April 24 , 2010 . He was waived by the team during final cuts on September 4 , 2010 . New England Patriots . The New England Patriots signed Austin to their practice squad on September 29 , 2010 . He was re - signed to a future contract on January 20 , 2011 . He was waived on September 3 . Houston Texans . On September 4 , he was claimed off waivers by the Houston Texans . He was waived during cutdown day on September 1st , 2012 Second stint with New England Patriots . The New England Patriots signed Austin to their practice squad on September 1 , 2012 . On October 2nd , 2012 , Austins contract was terminated . Carolina Panthers . On October 11 , Austin signed with the Carolina Panthers , one day after Panthers Pro Bowl center Ryan Kalil was placed on injured reserve with a foot injury .