The SWAC to NFL pipeline adds another success story in the opening week of the 2025 NFL season, with a former running back from the conference scoring his first NFL touchdown.
Alabama State standout Jacory Croskey-Merritt, now a member of the Washington Commanders, reached the end zone for the first time in the second quarter of the team’s season-opener against the New York Giants.
Entering the game as the backup running back behind Austin Ekeler, Merritt culminated a drive in which he took three carries for 23 yards with a six-yard touchdown run, giving the Commanders a 14-3 lead.
welcome to the end zone @JacoryMerritt15
📺 #NYGvsWAS FOX pic.twitter.com/Ayy9Xdv28W
— Washington Commanders (@Commanders) September 7, 2025
The former Hornet played for Alabama State from 2019-2022, compiling 1,161 rushing yards on 328 attempts and scoring 13 touchdowns.
He then transferred to the University of New Mexico for a year before ending his college career at the University of Arizona.
In the 2025 NFL Draft, he was selected in the seventh round by the Washington Commanders, making the team’s 53-man roster as the second running back on the depth chart behind Austin Ekeler.
He is one of two former Alabama State players on an active NFL roster, along with Houston Texans offensive lineman Tytus Howard (Keenan Isaac is a member of the Cleveland Browns’ practice squad).
Merritt is also one of three former HBCU running backs on an NFL roster, joining former Johnson C. Smith/Fort Valley State star Emanuel Wilson (Green Bay Packers) and former North Carolina A&T star Bhayshul Tuten (Jacksonville Jaguars).
