NEW ORLEANS – Alumni of Sun Belt Conference football programs remain well-represented on National Football League (NFL) rosters with 76 players earning roster spots prior to kickoff of the 2026 regular season on Wednesday, September 9.
Forty-six alumni of Sun Belt football teams will suit up during the league’s opening week of games as part of their team’s 53-man active roster. Twenty-one Sun Belt alums will begin the 2026 campaign on their respective team’s 16-man practice squad, while nine others are currently on injured and other reserve lists.
The Sun Belt is represented with at least one alumnus on 28-of-32 NFL franchises and multiple alumni on 20 different teams. All 14 Sun Belt football programs have at least one alum on an NFL roster, as Louisiana leads all schools in the league with 10 ahead of App State with 9. Troy ranks third with eight alumni followed by Arkansas State with seven.
Additionally, three undrafted rookies secured spots on 53-man rosters for Week 1 of the regular season, including former Arkansas State kicker Dominic Zvada of the New York Giants, Georgia Southern wide receiver Camden Brown of the Dallas Cowboys and James Madison safety Jacob Thomas of the Minnesota Vikings.
The Sun Belt has been represented in each of the past eight Super Bowls and had an alumnus on all 14 playoff rosters in each of the last four NFL postseasons.
App State
* Joey Aguilar - QB, Jacksonville Jaguars
* Anderson Castle - RB, Indianapolis Colts
Akeem Davis-Gaither - LB, Indianapolis Colts
D’Marco Jackson - LB, Chicago Bears
* Ahmani Marshall - RB, Carolina Panthers
Sam Martin - P, Carolina Panthers
^DeShawn McKnight - DL, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
* Jalen McLeod – LB, Jacksonville Jaguars
Ryan Neuzil – OL, Atlanta Falcons
Arkansas State
Jacob Bayer – C, Cincinnati Bengals
^Keyron Crawford - DE, Las Vegas Raiders
Demario Davis – LB, New York Jets
Blake Grupe – K, New York Jets
^Corey Rucker - WR, Las Vegas Raiders
Seydou Traore - TE, Miami Dolphins
Dominic Zvada - K, New York Giants
Coastal Carolina
Isaiah Likely – TE, New York Giants
Georgia Southern
^Darrell Baker Jr. - CB, Miami Dolphins
* Shemar Bartholomew - CB, Tennessee Titans
Tyler Bass - K, Buffalo Bills
Camden Brown - WR, Dallas Cowboys
* Kindle Vildor - CB, New England Patriots
Georgia State
Benjamin Chukwuma - OL, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Travis Glover - OL, Green Bay Packers
Ted Hurst - WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Wil Lutz - K, Denver Broncos
^Jamari Thrash - WR, Cleveland Browns
James Madison
Jamree Kromah - DL, Chicago Bears
Aaron Stinnie - OL, New York Giants
Jacob Thomas - S, Minnesota Vikings
Louisiana
Percy Butler - S, Washington Commanders
* Dalen Cambre - WR, New York Giants
Kevin Dotson - OL, Los Angeles Rams
Jaden Dugger - LB, San Francisco 49ers
Robert Hunt - OL, Carolina Panthers
* Andre Jones Jr. - LB, Buffalo Bills
Keyon Martin - CB, Baltimore Ravens
Max Mitchell - OL, New York Jets
^K.C. Ossai - LB, Houston Texans
Nathan Thomas - OL, Houston Texans
ULM
* D’Arco Perkins-McAllister, CB, Kansas City Chiefs
Car’lin Vigers - CB, Pittsburgh Steelers
Louisiana Tech
^Jimmy Holiday - WR, Kansas City Chiefs
Amik Robertson – CB, Washington Commanders
L’Jarius Sneed – CB, Kansas City Chiefs
Milton Williams – DL, New England Patriots
Xavier Woods – S, Chicago Bears
Marshall
Rasheen Ali - RB, Baltimore Ravens
* Ethan Driskell - OL, Kansas City Chiefs
Mike Green - EDGE, Baltimore Ravens
* Elias Neal - LB, Los Angeles Rams
* JJ Roberts - S, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Dalton Tucker - OL, Indianapolis Colts
Old Dominion
^ Nick Saldiveri – OL, New Orleans Saints
* Stone Smartt - TE, New Orleans Saints
Keion White – DL, San Francisco 49ers
South Alabama
* Kentrel Bullock - RB, Cincinnati Bengals
Darrell Luter Jr. - DB, Las Vegas Raiders
* Jamaal Pritchett - WR, New York Jets
Jeremy Reaves - S, Washington Commanders
* Jamie Sheriff - LB, Los Angeles Rams
Jalen Tolbert - WR, Miami Dolphins
Corliss Waitman - P, San Francisco 49ers
^Jeremiah Webb - WR, New England Patriots
Southern Miss
Swayze Bozeman - LB, Cincinnati Bengals
* Frank Gore Jr. - RB, Buffalo Bills
* Tim Jones - WR, Jacksonville Jaguars
* Nick Mullens - QB, Jacksonville Jaguars
Rakeem Nuñez-Roches - DL, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Troy
Jake Andrews - C, Houston Texans
Tez Johnson - WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Dell Pettus - S, New England Patriots
Caleb Ransaw - S, Jacksonville Jaguars
Javon Solomon - LB, Buffalo Bills
* Reddy Steward - CB, Dallas Cowboys
Kimani Vidal - RB, Los Angeles Chargers
*Practice Squad
^Injured & Other Reserve