Former University of Maine quarterback Joe Fagnano has landed a spot on the Baltimore Ravens’ 53-man roster, but his former Black Bear teammate Zavier Scott, a running back, was waived by the Minnesota Vikings.
Fagnano, an undrafted free agent, capped an outstanding preseason by completing 19 of 27 passes for 162 yards in a 41-3 win over the Washington Commanders. He threw a touchdown pass and ran for another. He engineered four scoring drives and put the Ravens in position two more times only to have two field goal attempts fail.
He will be the Ravens’ third string quarterback behind Lamar Jackson and Tyler Huntley.
He completed the preseason leading the NFL in passing yards with 509, and he completed 74.7 percent of his passes (56-for-75). He threw three touchdown passes and was intercepted just once.
The 25-year-old Fagnano played at Football Championship Subdivision UMaine from 2019-22 and completed 59.7 percent of his passes (461-for-772) for 5,655 yards and 46 touchdowns. He was intercepted 12 times. He also ran the ball 229 times for 535 yards and five TDs.
He then transferred to Football Bowl Subdivision UConn, where he completed 64.7 percent of his passes (423-for-654) for 48 TDs and six interceptions. He carried the ball 93 times for 223 yards and four touchdowns.
Last fall, he threw for 3,448 yards and 28 TDs with only one interception. He completed 69 percent of his passes.
He signed a three-year deal with the Ravens worth $3.1 million.
“He has been really consistent. He has played a certain way almost all three games,” said Ravens first-year head coach Jesse Minter in a BaltimoreRavens.com story.
The other former Black Bear who is on an NFL roster is two-time All-Pro fullback and six-time Pro Bowler Pat Ricard of the New York Giants. Ricard, a standout defensive lineman at UMaine, spent nine seasons with the Ravens but came over to the Giants with former Ravens head coach John Harbaugh.
The 32-year-old Ricard, is the league’s highest paid fullback after signing a two-year deal with the Giants worth $7.63 million.
He has earned a reputation as one of the NFL’s most punishing and effective blockers and he has also caught 49 career passes for 323 yards, 16 first downs and seven TDs. He has carried the ball 11 times for 22 yards.
Scott was vying for the No. 3 running back in Minnesota spot behind Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason but lost out to rookie speedster Demond Claiborne, a sixth-round draft pick out of Wake Forest.
The 27-year-old Scott, also an undrafted free agent, played for the Vikings a year ago and carried the ball 32 times for 114 yards and caught 14 passes for 98 yards and a touchdown. Seven of his catches produced first downs. He also took 149 snaps on special teams.
During the three preseason games, he carried the ball 12 times for 42 yards and caught four passes for 24. Claiborne gained 73 yards on 28 carries and had one reception for seven yards. He returned five kickoffs for an average of 25.2 yards.
Scott, who signed a one-year contract for a little over $1 million in March, can be claimed on waivers by another team, become an unrestricted free agent or earn a spot on a practice squad.