Ravens Draft Pick Shares Plans to Give Back

Like most kids who grew up playing football in North Carolina, Baltimore Ravens rookie offensive tackle Carson Vinson spent his Saturdays watching the three major FBS Division I programs in the state which are Duke, North Carolina State and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

The Cary native dreamt of one day playing for one of the three schools. However, despite possessing Division I measurables at 6-foot-6 and 305 pounds at the time, when he was coming out of Panther Creek High School in Morrisville, he didn't receive interest from any of them.

"None of them wanted me," Vinson said.

Still determined to play at the collegiate level, he took his talents to Alabama A&M, a historically black college located in Huntsville, Alabama.

"I slipped through the cracks, but, Alabama A&M, they found me," Vinson said. "They found me, and they took me in with open arms."

Vinson rewarded the Bulldogs for their belief in him by becoming a stalwart blindside protector and starting 43 games at left tackle from 2021-2024, earning Honorable Mention Associated Press FCS All-American, Honorable Mention HBCU All-American and First-team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference in his final season.

There was a point later in his career when some of the same schools that passed on him coming out of high school circled back to try to recruit him to transfer including his beloved UNC Tar Heels who he grew up rooting for. Despite being in college during the birth of the NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) era, he stayed loyal to Alabama A&M and stayed put.

"They came back calling around my junior [or] senior year, and I wasn't going to go because [they] didn't want me out of high school," Vinson said. "It was really just a chip on my shoulder that I took throughout college. And then I said, 'OK, I'm going to do it from the school that wanted me first."

Being from a small school and still making it to the NFL where he was selected by the Ravens in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft at No. 141 overall this past Saturday is an accomplishment Vinson takes tremendous pride in.

"It was so amazing. Just the family feel that I got from there, and then they built me up, because everything I am right now is what Alabama A&M built," Vinson said. "They got me together, and it's really a big blessing that I can not only come from those institutions, but when I get to where I'm at, I can give back, because one of the most important things, too, is giving back."

Vinson intends "pour into" HBCU programs with more than just monetarily but with his time and presence in person.

"When you get past your HBCU, it's really important not only just to give money – anybody can give a check – but it's really important to be there and be hands on," Vinson said. "A lot of times, when we make it from these spaces, we might give a check back or might give some money back, but I really want to go back to my institution and be there where they can see me, because it's important."

Vinson recalled a time when fellow Bulldog alumnus, Robert Mathis, who is a five-time Pro Bowl pass rusher and a Super Bowl champion and Hall of Fame wide receiver John Stallworth and four-time Super Bowl champion visited his practices while he was in college and how much it meant to him to physically have them there.

"When you see them in the flesh, it becomes real," Vinson said. "I knew it was real because I've seen Robert Mathis in person, and he went to the same institution as I did. I've seen John Stallworth. So, it's really important to be there, and that's how I really wanted to give back. It's about me being hands on."

Vinson was not only the lone player from an HBCU to get drafted this year and just the third since 2022 but he was the only one who was invited and attended the 2025 Reese's Senior Bowl and NFL Scouting Combine. The 6-foot-4 and 314-pounder comported himself well and significantly boosted his draft stock as a result.

"That Senior Bowl was able to put me on a stage where I could really prove myself against the best-of-the-best athletes, especially when you come from a smaller school," Vinson said. "That's one thing that a lot of people have questions about is if they can translate to a higher level. So, the Senior Bowl was a blessing to get the invite and then to prepare myself to play well at – it was just the icing on the cake."

Throughout the pre-draft process, Vinson knew he was representing more than just himself. He was an embodiment of HBCU football and he hopes his journey and success will inspire others to believe that they can also make their dreams come true from unconventional avenues.

"Being from an HBCU, it is so special because over this entire process, when HBCU guys get past our space, we have our rivalries, and we have the teams where we go at each other. But after, when we get past it, we're all one big family," Vinson said. "We're all one big thing. So, I've gotten support from every single HBCU [team], especially after I got the Senior Bowl invite. After games, they'll say, 'Hey, you're going to do great things,' so it's all one big family."

"With the transfer portal, and the way things are, a lot of guys feel like they have to transfer up to go to where they want to go, but it's really important to me that I stayed at Alabama A&M for all four years, and it was the best four years of my life. And you can go anywhere you want to from the institution that you're at."

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