University of Connecticut Athletics
Six Huskies Invited to NFL Rookie Mini-Camps
4/26/2026 7:21:00 PM | Football
STORRS, CT – Six former UConn football players have earned invites to upcoming NFL rookie mini-camps in May.
Quarterback Joe Fagnano will take part in the Baltimore Ravens rookie camp, place kicker Chris Freeman with the Houston Texans, tight end Lou Hansen, linebacker Donovan Branch and punter Connor Stutz with the Kansas City Chiefs and corner back Devin Pringle with the Chicago Bears will NFL rookie camps next month looking to earn a free agent deal.
Fagnano was a 2025 Heisman Award candidate as well as a Davey O'Brien Award semifinalist and was also the 2025 Gold Helmet winner by the New England Football Writers Association and the Offensive Player of the Year by the Gridiron Club of Greater Boston. He started 12 games for the Huskies this season, the first UConn QB to do so since the 2018 season.
On the year, he finished 285-for-413 for 3,448 yards, 28 TDs and one interception with a 161.03 passing efficiency rating. His one interception is the fewest all-time by a quarterback at UConn while his quarterback rating is a school record as well. He had six games on the season throwing for 300 or more yards and capped the year with the best performance of his career, completing 33 passes for 446 yards in the win at Florida Atlantic. He had seven games with three or more TD throws.
During his UConn career, he has played in 24 games and completed 423-of-654 passes for 5,252 yards and 48 touchdowns against six interceptions. He ranks fourth all-time in touchdowns, fifth all-time in passing yards and completions. In his career between UConn and Maine, Fagnano played 51 career games with 10,926 yards passing, 94 touchdowns and 18 interceptions.
Freeman has played in 26 games over the past two seasons after transferring from Indiana. In 2025, he was 23-of-26 on field goal attempts (88.46%) and hit a long of 50 yards. He led the team in scoring for the second-straight season, making all 52 of his extra point attempts to finish the year with 225 points. Over his career he was 43-of-52 (82.69%) on field goals and never missed an extra point (101-101).
Branch played his entire career at UConn. In 2025, the linebacker played in 12 games and finished with 30 total tackles. He had 5.0 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks, a career-high. Over his career in Storrs, Branch played in 46 games and had 59 total tackles and 5.0 sacks.
Hansen was a starter at tight end in all 13 games this season and hauled in 20 passes for 194 yards. A transfer in from Michigan, Hansen played three seasons for the Huskies and appeared in 37 total games. He had 46 career catches for 463 yards and four touchdowns. He had his most productive season as a junior when he caught 24 passes for 236 yards and four scores in 2024.
Stutz was the Huskies punter throughout the 2025 season and finished the year with 49 punts for a 44.9 yard average. He had a long of 67 yards and had 12 punts over 50 yards. He forced 19 fair catches, had 19 punts downed inside the 20 yard line. A transfer from Sacramento State, Stutz played two seasons in Storrs and 26 games. He had 111 punts and averaged 44.2 yards for his career.
Pringle started 12 games at corner this past fall, posting 45 total tackles including 4.0 for a loss, a sack, four pass break-ups and an interception. Pringle transferred to UConn prior to last season after four-years at Grand Valley State where he played in 38 career games, making 90 tackles, 1.5 for a loss, with 18 pass break-ups and two interceptions
