Hall of Fame
Following a great career at Towson Jermon went on to enjoy a distinguished 12-year playing career as a professional football player in the NFL.
“Coming from where I came from in King George (Va.) I didn’t think things would turn out the way they have,” says Jermon. “In life it’s all about opportunity and relationships. It’s about who sees something in you that you don’t see in yourself and who can push you. That happened to me at Towson. I was thinking I’d get a scholarship after the first year so my parents wouldn’t have to pay any more. It was really (offensive line) coach John Donatelli who pushed me and showed me and who had a conversation with me outside of Unitas Stadium one afternoon that really changed my life. He gave me the inspiration I needed. He was the one who told me this (pro career) could be an option for me. I took his advice and ran with it.”
Jermon started the final 38 games of his college career. A 2006 Tiger captain, he earned All-Atlantic 10 postseason honors three times; honorable mention as a sophomore, second team as a junior and first team as a senior. The 6-5, 350 lb. offensive tackle was a 4th round drafted choice of the New Orleans Saints. As the 125th player taken in the 2007 NFL college draft he was the highest draft pick of any Atlantic 10 player that year.
After an understudy role with the Saints in his first two years he became a fixture on their offensive line at left tackle, helping them to a Super Bowl championship in 2010. The following year Jermon led the NFL in snaps played with 1,117. He was a Pro Bowl selection in 2011 and 2012. He started 128 of the 145 games in the seven seasons he played for the Saints. He was subsequently traded to Chicago where he played three years for the Bears before moving on to the Miami Dolphins for two years. In 2018 he returned to New Orleans. He officially retired as a Saint in 2019.
Off the field Jermon, who earned his degree at Towson in Sports Management, was nominated for the Ed Block Courage Award. In 2015 he was the recipient of Towson University’s prestigious Distinguished Alumni Award. Over the years the Visualize and Rize Foundation which he founded along with his father, Jerry Bushrod, to support youth sports and education programs, donated over $800,000 to the King George community and surrounding counties.
