Five former Utah State football players sign NFL Free Agent contracts

Utah State tight end Dax Raymond (87) in the second half during the Arizona Bowl NCAA college football game against New Mexico State, Friday, Dec. 29, 2017, in Tucson, Ariz. New Mexico State defeated Utah State 26-20 in overtime. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)

LOGAN, Utah – Following the conclusion of the 2019 NFL Draft Saturday, Utah State football had five former players sign free agent contracts. Tight end Dax Raymond and wide receiver Ron’quavion Tarver both signed with the Chicago Bears, while linebacker Jontrell Rocquemore and safety Aaron Wade both signed with the Cleveland Browns. Fellow safety Gaje Ferguson rounded out the signees as he joined the Kansas City Chiefs.

The five players listed above joins Darwin Thompson in the NFL as the running back was drafted in the sixth round (214th overall pick) by the Kansas City Chiefs.

The six Utah State players listed above will join 14 other former Aggies who are currently on NFL rosters, including safety Maurice Alexander (Buffalo Bills), cornerback Jalen Davis (Miami Dolphins), safety Marwin Evans (Seattle Seahawks), linebacker Kyler Fackrell (Green Bay Packers), offensive guard Tyler Larsen (Carolina Panthers), defensive back Nevin Lawson (Oakland Raiders), safety Dallin Leavitt (Oakland Raiders), running back Devante Mays (Cleveland Browns), long snapper Patrick Scales (Chicago Bears), wide receiver Hunter Sharp (Cincinnati Bengals), running back Robert Turbin (Oakland Raiders), linebacker Nick Vigil (Cincinnati Bengals), linebacker Bobby Wagner (Seattle Seahawks) and running back Kerwynn Williams (Detroit Lions).

Raymond, a 6-foot-5, 250-pounder from Provo, Utah (Timpview HS), missed four games during his junior year in 2018 with a broken hand, but still earned honorable mention all-Mountain West honors after catching 27 passes for 345 yards (12.8 ypc) and two touchdowns. For his career, he caught 72 passes for 873 yards (12.1 ypc) and three touchdowns.

Previously, Raymond garnered honorable mention all-Mountain West and academic all-conference honors following the 2017 campaign.

Tarver, a 6-3, 215-pounder from Belle Glade, Fla. (Glades Central HS/Fort Scott CC) earned third-team all-Mountain West honors from Phil Steele’s Magazine and honorable mention all-MW honors from the league’s coaches after starting all 13 games in 2018. As a senior, he finished the season leading the team in every receiving category as he caught 66 passes for 709 yards (10.7 ypr) and eight touchdowns. Overall, he ranked fifth in the MW and 50th nationally with his eight receiving touchdowns (0.6 pg), and seventh in the conference and 63rd in the nation in receptions (5.1 pg).

For his career, Tarver ranks fourth all-time in school history with 160 receptions and seventh all-time with 18 receiving touchdowns. He also had four career 100-yard receiving games and caught at least one pass in each of his final 37 games. In all, he had 1,880 receiving yards in 38 career games, including 32 starts.

Rocquemore, a 6-1, 210-pounder from McKinney, Texas (McKinney HS) earned second-team all-Mountain West honors from both the league’s coaches and Phil Steele’s Magazine after starting all 13 games in 2018. He finished his senior year with 73 tackles (31-solo, 42-assist), which included 2.0 sacks and 8.5 tackles for loss, to go along with four quarterback hurries, three interceptions, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and one pass breakup. Overall, he ranked third on the team in interceptions, tackles for loss and sacks, and fourth on the team in tackles.

For his career, Rocquemore played in 43 games with 19 starts and had 152 total tackles, which included 3.0 sacks and 11.5 tackles for loss, while adding five interceptions, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries. He also had a pair of double-digit tackle outings.

Rocquemore also earned academic all-MW honors each of his four years at Utah State.

Wade, a 6-1, 210-pounder from Lithia, Fla. (Newsome HS) finished his senior season fifth on the team with 50 tackles (28-solo, 22-assist), which included 3.0 tackles for loss. He also tied for the team lead with four interceptions, which tied for first in the Mountain West and 16th in the nation, while adding two pass breakups. He was also named the MW Defensive Player of the Week following his performance against New Mexico State as he recorded a career-high 10 tackles, including 0.5 tackles for loss, and added a career-best two interceptions, to go along with one pass breakup.

For his career, Wade played in 43 games with eight starts and had 67 total tackles, which included 3.0 tackles for loss, while adding four interceptions and two pass breakups.

Ferguson, a 6-0, 210-pounder from Mendon, Utah (Mountain Crest HS/Snow College) earned honorable mention all-Mountain West honors after starting all 13 games in 2018. As a senior, he finished the season ranking third on the team with 74 tackles (30-solo, 44-assist), which included 1.0 sacks and 3.0 tackles for loss, while adding five pass breakups, two interceptions and one forced fumble.

For his career, Ferguson played in 34 games and made 28 starts and had four career double-digit tackle outings. In all, he had 204 tackles, which included 2.0 sacks and 7.0 tackles for loss, while adding seven pass breakups, two interceptions, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.

Free News Delivery by Email

Would you like to have the day's news stories delivered right to your inbox every evening? Enter your email below to start!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

For security, use of Google's reCAPTCHA service is required which is subject to the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

I agree to these terms.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.