NEW ORLEANS – Marshall alum and Baltimore Ravens running back Rasheen Ali scored his first professional touchdown, as App State product and Chicago Bears linebacker D’Marco Jackson filled up the box score on defense to lead Sun Belt Conference alumni performances during Week 15 of the 2025 National Football League (NFL) season.
A second-year pro, Ali caught two passes for 32 yards, including a 30-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Lamar Jackson with 4:35 remaining in the second quarter, to give Baltimore 7-0 lead over the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday. Ali now has five catches for 58 yards this season, as the Ravens went on to win the game, 24-0.
Also on offense for the Sun Belt, Troy alum and Los Angeles Chargers running back Kimani Vidal rushed 12 times for 33 yards and caught one pass for 15 yards in a 16-13 road win over the Kansas City Chiefs. In 11 games and nine starts during his second NFL season, Vidal now has 620 rushing yards and 15 receptions for 138 yards with four total touchdowns.
Defensively, Jackson continued his productive and impactful ways since taking over as a starter by compiling seven tackles, one sack, one interception and two passes defended in a 31-3 home win over the Cleveland Browns. Jackson sacked rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders for a loss of eight yards on the final play of the first quarter, before intercepting a pass on third down with under nine minutes remaining in the third quarter. In his third season, the sack and interception were both firsts in his NFL career.
Another App State product - Arizona Cardinals linebacker Akeem Davis-Gaither - recorded a season-high 11 tackles in the team’s 40-20 road loss to the Houston Texans on Sunday. In his fifth NFL season, Davis-Gaither now has three double-digit tackling efforts on the year.
Marshall product and Ravens rookie edge rusher Mike Green recorded a sack of Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow on the final play of the first half to increase his total to 3.5 this season. Green now has at least one tackle for loss in three of the last four games and seven of his last nine.
On special teams, Texas State alum and Detroit Lions kicker Jake Bates scored 10 points, going 2-for-3 on field goals and 4-for-4 on extra points, in a 41-34 road defeat to the Los Angeles Rams. Bates made field goals from 48 and 24 yards, respectively, and now has double-digit points in consecutive games after racking up 14 against the Dallas Cowboys on Dec. 4.
Arkansas State product and Indianapolis Colts kicker Blake Grupe also scored 10 points, going 3-for-3 on field goals with one extra point, in an 18-16 road loss to the Seattle Seahawks. The third-year pro split the uprights from 60, 54 and 42 yards, respectively, as the 60-yarder marked a career long.
Sun Belt football alumni held 82 roster spots on 31-of-32 NFL rosters with 42 on active rosters, 27 on practice squads and 13 on injured or other reserve lists. In Week 15 contests, 36 saw game action with 19 earning the start for their respective teams.
All 14 Sun Belt programs have been represented on an NFL roster each week during the 2025 campaign. App State leads all Sun Belt teams with 11 former standouts on NFL rosters followed by Louisiana with 10, as South Alabama and Southern Miss have nine apiece.
App State
Akeem Davis-Gaither – LB, Arizona Cardinals (1 G, 1 GS, 11 Tackles)
* Tyrek Funderburk – CB, Minnesota Vikings
* Nick Hampton – LB, Los Angeles Rams
^ Cooper Hodges – OL, Jacksonville Jaguars
D’Marco Jackson – LB, Chicago Bears (1 G, 1 GS, 7 Tackles, 1 Sack, 1 Interception, 1 Tackle For Loss, 2 Passes Defended)
* Shemar Jean-Charles, DB, Seattle Seahawks
Kendall Lamm – OL, Miami Dolphins (1 G)
* Ahmani Marshall – RB, Cleveland Browns
Sam Martin – P, Carolina Panthers (1 G, 1 GS, 3 Punts, 142 Yards)
^ Jalen McLeod – LB, Jacksonville Jaguars
Ryan Neuzil – OL, Atlanta Falcons (1 G, 1 GS, 1 Fumble Recovered)
Arkansas State
* Jacob Bayer – OL, Cincinnati Bengals
* William Bradley-King – LB, San Francisco 49ers
* Mekhi Butler – OL, New England Patriots
Demario Davis – LB, New Orleans Saints (1 G, 1 GS, 5 Tackles)
Blake Grupe – K, Indianapolis Colts (1 G, 1 GS, 3-for-3 FG, 1-for-1 XP)
* Courtney Jackson – WR, Seattle Seahawks
* Trevian Thomas – S, Jacksonville Jaguars
Coastal Carolina
^ Tarron Jackson – DL, San Francisco 49ers
Isaiah Likely – TE, Baltimore Ravens (1 G, 1 GS)
Georgia Southern
Darrell Baker Jr. – CB, Tennessee Titans (1 G, 1 GS, 5 Tackles)
* Shemar Bartholomew – CB, Green Bay Packers
^ Tyler Bass – K, Buffalo Bills
Younghoe Koo – K, New York Giants (1 G, 1 GS, 0-for-2 FG, 3-for-3 XP)
Kindle Vildor – CB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1 G, 4 Tackles)
Georgia State (3)
Benjamin Chukwuma – OL, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1 G)
^ Travis Glover – OL, Green Bay Packers
Wil Lutz – K, Denver Broncos (1 G, 1 GS, 4-for-4 XP)
James Madison
* Liam Fornadel, OL, New York Jets
* Jamree Kromah, DE, Chicago Bears
Aaron Stinnie – OL, New York Giants (1 G)
Louisiana
Percy Butler – S, Washington Commanders (1 G)
Dalen Cambre – WR, New York Giants (1 G, 1 Tackle)
Kevin Dotson – OL, Los Angeles Rams (1 G, 1 GS)
^ Robert Hunt – OL, Carolina Panthers
Andre Jones Jr. – DE, Buffalo Bills (1 G)
Keyon Martin – CB, Baltimore Ravens (DNP)
Elijah Mitchell – RB, Kansas City Chiefs (DNP)
Max Mitchell – OL, New York Jets (1 G, 1 GS)
* K.C. Ossai – LB, Miami Dolphins
Nate Thomas – OL, Dallas Cowboys (1 G, 1 GS)
ULM
* Car’lin Vigers – CB, Washington Commanders
Marshall
Rasheen Ali – RB, Baltimore Ravens (1 G, 2 Receptions, 32 Yards, 1 Touchdown, 1 Kickoff Return, 32 Yards)
^ Ethan Driskell – OL, Kansas City Chiefs
Mike Green – LB, Baltimore Ravens (1 G, 1 Tackle, 1 Sack, 1 Tackle For Loss)
Neville Hewitt – LB, New York Giants (1 G, 1 Tackle)
^ Nazeeh Johnson – S, Kansas City Chiefs
* Elias Neal – LB, Los Angeles Rams
^ J.J. Roberts – S, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Dalton Tucker – OL, Indianapolis Colts (1 G)
Old Dominion
* Tre Hawkins III – CB, Washington Commanders
^ Nick Saldiveri – OL, New Orleans Saints
Stone Smartt – TE, New York Jets
^ Blake Watson – RB, Tennessee Titans
Keion White – DL, San Francisco 49ers (1 G, 1 GS, 1 Tackle, 2 Quarterback Hits)
South Alabama
* Carter Bradley – QB, Jacksonville Jaguars
Darrell Luter Jr. – CB, San Francisco 49ers (1 G)
* Jamaal Pritchett – WR, New York Jets
Jeremy Reaves – S, Washington Commanders (1 G, 4 Tackles, 1 Tackle For Loss)
* Jamie Sheriff – LB, Seattle Seahawks
* Wy’Kevious “Bubba” Thomas – DL, Seattle Seahawks
Jalen Tolbert – WR, Dallas Cowboys (DNP)
Corliss Waitman – P, Pittsburgh Steelers (1 G, 1 GS, 5 Punts, 231 Yards)
* Jeremiah Webb – WR, New England Patriots
Southern Miss
^ Cornell Armstrong – CB, Miami Dolphins
* Swayze Bozeman – LB, New York Giants
Natrone Brooks – CB, Atlanta Falcons (1 G)
* Jason Brownlee – WR, Kansas City Chiefs
* Frank Gore Jr. – RB, Buffalo Bills
* Tim Jones – WR, Jacksonville Jaguars
Nick Mullens – QB, Jacksonville Jaguars (1 G, 3 Rushes, -2 Yards)
Rakeem Nunez-Roches – DL, New York Giants (DNP)
* Quez Watkins – WR, Philadelphia Eagles
Texas State
Jake Bates – K, Detroit Lions (1 G, 1 GS, 2-for-3 FG, 4-for-4 XP)
Aaron Brewer – OL, Miami Dolphins (1 G, 1 GS)
^ Deion Hankins – RB, Chicago Bears
* Kyle Hergel – OL, Chicago Bears
Troy
Jake Andrews – OL, Houston Texans (1 G, 1 GS)
Dell Pettus – S, New England Patriots (1 G, 1 Tackle)
Javon Solomon – EDGE, Buffalo Bills (1 G, 2 Tackles)
Reddy Steward – CB, Dallas Cowboys (1 G, 1 Tackle)
Kimani Vidal – RB, Los Angeles Chargers (1 G, 1 GS, 12 Rushes, 33 Yards, 1 Reception, 15 Yards)
*Practice Squad
^Injured & Other Reserve