NEW ORLEANS – Old Dominion alumnus Stone Smartt and James Madison product Aaron Stinnie made their first starts of the season to spotlight Sun Belt alumni contributions during Week 16 of the 2025 National Football League (NFL) season.
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 16 contests, 29 saw game action with 13 earning the start for their respective teams.
In his first season with the New York Jets and fourth overall, tight end Smartt played 20 offensive snaps and eight more on special teams while matching a career high with five receptions for 43 yards in the team’s 29-6 road loss to the New Orleans Saints. The five catches were his first of the season, while the start was the seventh of his career.
Also on offense, Troy alum and Los Angeles Chargers starting running back Kimani Vidal rushed five times for 11 yards and returned two kickoffs for 41 yards before leaving with an injury in the team’s 34-17 road win over the Dallas Cowboys.
In his seventh NFL season and second with the New York Giants, offensive lineman Aaron Stinnie made his 16th-career start in his 62nd game in the team’s 16-13 home loss to the Minnesota Vikings. Stinnie was one of six Sun Belt alumni to start along their respective teams’ offensive line in Week 16.
Defensively, App State alum and Arizona Cardinals starting linebacker Akeem Davis-Gaither matched his season high with 11 tackles for the second week in a row in the team’s 26-19 home setback to the Atlanta Falcons. He now has double-digit tackles in three of the last four weeks and five times overall in 2025.
Arkansas State alum and Saints starting linebacker Demario Davis notched eight tackles, one tackle for loss and one pass defended in Sunday’s win over the Jets. South Alabama product and San Francisco 49ers cornerback Darrell Luter Jr. made his second NFL start and registered a season-high six tackles with one pass defended in a 49-28 victory over the Indianapolis Colts on Monday Night Football.
In the scoring column, a trio of kickers lit up the scoreboard for the respective clubs. Arkansas State product and Colts kicker Blake Grupe was perfect on the day going 2-for-2 on field goals and 3-for-3 on extra points. Georgia State alumnus and Denver Broncos kicker Wil Lutz went 2-for-3 on field goals 2-for-2 on extra points in a 34-20 home loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, while Texas State alum and Detroit Lions kicker Jake Bates made his lone field goal attempt and went 3-for-3 on extra points in a 29-24 home setback against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
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, South Alabama and Southern Miss with 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 (DNP)
^ Cooper Hodges – OL, Jacksonville Jaguars
D’Marco Jackson – LB, Chicago Bears (1 G)
* Shemar Jean-Charles, DB, Seattle Seahawks
Kendall Lamm – OL, Miami Dolphins (DNP)
* Ahmani Marshall – RB, Cleveland Browns
Sam Martin – P, Carolina Panthers (1 G, 1 GS, 3 Punts, 136 Yards)
^ Jalen McLeod – LB, Jacksonville Jaguars
Ryan Neuzil – OL, Atlanta Falcons (1 G, 1 GS)
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, 8 Tackles, 1 Tackle For Loss, 1 Pass Defended)
Blake Grupe – K, Indianapolis Colts (1 G, 1 GS, 2-for-2 FG, 3-for-3 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)
Georgia Southern
Darrell Baker Jr. – CB, Tennessee Titans (1 G, 1 GS, 1 Tackle, 1 Pass Defended)
* Shemar Bartholomew – CB, Green Bay Packers
^ Tyler Bass – K, Buffalo Bills
Kindle Vildor – CB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1 G)
Georgia State
Benjamin Chukwuma – OL, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1 G)
^ Travis Glover – OL, Green Bay Packers
Wil Lutz – K, Denver Broncos (1 G, 1 GS, 2-for-3 FG, 2-for-2 XP)
Jamari Thrash - WR, Cleveland Browns (DNP)
James Madison
* Liam Fornadel, OL, New York Jets
* Jamree Kromah, DE, Chicago Bears
Aaron Stinnie – OL, New York Giants (1 G, 1 GS, 1 Tackle)
Louisiana
Percy Butler – S, Washington Commanders (1 G)
Dalen Cambre – WR, New York Giants (1 G)
Kevin Dotson – OL, Los Angeles Rams (1 G, 1 GS)
^ Robert Hunt – OL, Carolina Panthers
Andre Jones Jr. – DE, Buffalo Bills (1 G, 4 Tackles)
Keyon Martin – CB, Baltimore Ravens (1 G)
Max Mitchell – OL, New York Jets (1 G)
* K.C. Ossai – LB, Miami Dolphins
Nate Thomas – OL, Dallas Cowboys (1 G)
ULM
* Car’lin Vigers – CB, Washington Commanders
Marshall
Rasheen Ali – RB, Baltimore Ravens (1 G, 2 Receptions, 2 Yards, 1 Kickoff Return, 29 Yards)
^ Ethan Driskell – OL, Kansas City Chiefs
Mike Green – LB, Baltimore Ravens (1 G, 1 Tackle, 1 Quarterback Hit)
Neville Hewitt – LB, New York Giants (1 G)
^ Nazeeh Johnson – S, Kansas City Chiefs (DNP)
* Elias Neal – LB, Los Angeles Rams
^ J.J. Roberts – S, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Dalton Tucker – OL, Indianapolis Colts (1 G, 1 GS)
Old Dominion
* Tre Hawkins III – CB, Washington
^ Nick Saldiveri – OL, New Orleans Saints
Stone Smartt – TE, New York Jets (1 G, 1 GS, 5 Receptions, 34 Yards)
^ Blake Watson – RB, Tennessee Titans
Keion White – DL, San Francisco 49ers (1 G, 3 Tackles, 1 Quarterback Hit)
South Alabama
* Carter Bradley – QB, Jacksonville Jaguars
Darrell Luter Jr. – CB, San Francisco 49ers (1 G, 1 GS, 6 Tackles, 1 Pass Defended)
* Jamaal Pritchett – WR, New York Jets
Jeremy Reaves – S, Washington Commanders (1 G, 3 Tackles)
* 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, 3 Punts, 150 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 (DNP)
Rakeem Nunez-Roches – DL, New York Giants (DNP)
* Quez Watkins – WR, Philadelphia Eagles
Texas State
Jake Bates – K, Detroit Lions (1 G, 1 GS, 1-for-1 FG, 3-for-3 XP)
Aaron Brewer – OL, Miami Dolphins (1 G, 1 GS)
^ Deion Hankins – RB, Chicago Bears
* Kyle Hergel – OL, Chicago Bears
* Nash Jones - OL, Denver Broncos
Troy
Jake Andrews – OL, Houston Texans (1 G, 1 GS)
Dell Pettus – S, New England Patriots (1 G)
Javon Solomon – EDGE, Buffalo Bills (1 G)
Reddy Steward – CB, Dallas Cowboys (1 G, 3 Tackles, 1 Tackle For Loss)
Kimani Vidal – RB, Los Angeles Chargers (1 G, 1 GS, 5 Rushes, 11 Yards, 2 Kickoff Returns, 41 Yards)
*Practice Squad
^Injured & Other Reserve