Former University of Maine standout Zavier Scott caught his first career touchdown in the NFL on Sunday.
Scott, a running back on the Minnesota Vikings, caught the 16-yard touchdown pass midway through the fourth quarter against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Dublin, Ireland.
Scott’s touchdown made the score 24-12 with the Steelers in the lead. The Vikings successfully completed a two-point conversion to make it 24-12 at the time.
The Steelers went on to win the game 24-21.
Scott caught six passes on eight targets for 43 yards and the touchdown. He also rushed twice for 1 yard.
The 26-year-old Scott has seen more playing time in the wake of injuries to Vikings’ running backs Aaron Jones and Ty Chandler. Scott was on the Vikings’ practice squad last year and signed a one-year contract for $840,000 with the Vikings in the offseason.
The 6-foot-1, 219-pound Scott transferred to UMaine after spending two years at the University of Connecticut. He was a third team All-Coastal Athletic Association selection in his final season at UMaine.
He led the Black Bears in receptions with 42 for 434 yards and he was also the team’s second-leading rusher with 371 yards on 39 carries. His 9.5 yards per carry led the CAA.
In the fall of 2021, he had 119 rushing yards on 35 carries at UMaine and also had 11 catches for 114 yards. He played in two of the four spring games that year and caught six passes for 102 yards.
