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Kirk Merritt

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Kirk Merritt
No. 22 – Houston Roughnecks
Position:Running back
Wide receiver
Personal information
Born: (1997-01-05) January 5, 1997 (age 27)
New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.
Height:6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:214 lb (97 kg)
Career information
High school:Destrehan
(Destrehan, Louisiana)
College:Oregon (2015)
Texas A&M (2016)
East Mississippi CC (2017)
Arkansas State (2018–2019)
Undrafted:2020
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2023
Receptions:1
Receiving yards:13
Receiving touchdowns:0
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Kirk Merritt (born January 5, 1997) is an American professional football running back and wide receiver for the Houston Roughnecks of the United Football League (UFL). He played college football at Arkansas State.

Early life

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Merritt grew up in Destrehan, Louisiana, and attended Destrehan High School. He gained a combined 1,058 rushing and receiving yards and scored 11 total touchdowns as a senior.[1] Merritt was rated a four-star recruit and committed to play college football at Oregon over offers from Alabama, Auburn, and Texas A&M.[2]

College career

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Merritt began his collegiate career at the University of Oregon. He played in 12 games for the Ducks as a freshman and caught five passes for 61 yards and rushed three times for 13 yards. Merritt left the program after his freshman year.[3]

Merritt later transferred to Texas A&M.[4] Merritt sat out the 2016 season due to NCAA transfer rules. He was dismissed from the team in April 2017, after being charged for two separate cases of indecent exposure.[5] Following his dismissal, Merritt transferred to East Mississippi Community College.[6] He caught 52 passes for 628 yards and four touchdowns in his lone season with the Lions and committed to transfer to Arkansas State University for his final two years of eligibility.[7]

Merritt became an immediate starter for the Red Wolves and was named first-team All-Sun Belt Conference after leading the conference with 83 receptions and 1,005 receiving yards while also catching seven touchdowns.[8] He repeated as a first-team All-Sun Belt selection as a redshirt senior after finishing the season with 70 receptions for 806 yards and 12 touchdowns.[9]

Professional career

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span
5 ft 11+5⁄8 in
(1.82 m) 		208 lb
(94 kg) 		32+1⁄4 in
(0.82 m) 		10+1⁄4 in
(0.26 m)
All values from Pro Day[10]

Miami Dolphins

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Merritt was signed by the Miami Dolphins as an undrafted free agent on April 25, 2020.[11] He was waived on September 4, 2020, during final roster cuts, but was signed to the team's practice squad on September 6.[12][13] He was elevated to the active roster on November 7 for the team's week 9 game against the Arizona Cardinals, and reverted to the practice squad after the game.[14] He was placed on the practice squad/COVID-19 list by the team on December 15, 2020,[15] and restored to the practice squad three days later.[16] He was elevated to the active roster again on December 31 for the week 17 game against the Buffalo Bills, and reverted to the practice squad again following the game.[17] He signed a reserve/future contract with the Dolphins on January 6, 2021.[18]

On August 31, 2021, Merritt was waived by the Dolphins and re-signed to the practice squad the next day.[19]

New Orleans Saints

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On January 24, 2022, Merritt signed a reserve/future contract with the New Orleans Saints.[20] He was waived on August 30, 2022, and signed to the practice squad the next day.[21][22] He was promoted to the active roster on December 23.

On September 19, 2023, Merritt was waived by the Saints and re-signed to the practice squad.[23] On September 26, 2023, Merritt was cut from the Saints practice squad.[24]

Houston Roughnecks

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On January 26, 2024, Merritt signed with the Houston Roughnecks of the United Football League (UFL) as a running back.[25] He was placed on injured reserve on April 17, 2024.[26] He was activated on May 31.[26] He re-signed with the team on August 19, 2024.[27]

References

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  1. ^ Sayles, Damon (February 2, 2015). "How the Versatility of 4-Star Kirk Merritt Can Help the Oregon Class". Bleacher Report. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
  2. ^ Suffrin, Al (February 5, 2015). "Destrehan's Kirk Merritt commits to Oregon". The New Orleans Advocate. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
  3. ^ Martini, Pete (June 20, 2016). "WR Kirk Merritt leaves Oregon Ducks because of 'family issues'". Statesman Journal. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  4. ^ Cooper, Sam (July 8, 2016). "Texas A&M lands Oregon transfer Kirk Merritt". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  5. ^ Spain, Kevin (April 26, 2017). "Kirk Merritt dismissed from Texas A&M football team". USA Today. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  6. ^ "Report: Ex-Texas A&M wide receiver Kirk Merritt headed to 'Last Chance U'". The Dallas Morning News. May 14, 2017. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  7. ^ Kubena, Brooks (January 17, 2018). "ASU: Juco WR signee passes vetting". The Northwest Arkansas Times. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  8. ^ Hudgison, Chris (July 18, 2019). "Arkansas State WR Kirk Merritt selected to Biletnikoff Award watch list". KAIT8.com. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  9. ^ Schwartz, Matthew (April 18, 2020). "Arkansas State WR Kirk Merritt talks NFL Draft prep and future at next level". KAIT8.com. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  10. ^ "2020 NFL Draft Scout Kirk Merritt College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  11. ^ Schwartz, Matthew (April 25, 2020). "Arkansas State WR Kirk Merritt agrees to undrafted free agent deal with the Miami Dolphins". KAIT8.com. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  12. ^ "Kirk Merritt: Heads to waivers". CBSSports.com. RotoWire. September 4, 2020. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  13. ^ Kelly, Omar (September 6, 2020). "Dolphins sign former Gators receiver to practice squad". CBS12.com. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  14. ^ "Activated Austin Jackson, Elevated Kirk Merritt". MiamiDolphins.com. November 7, 2020. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  15. ^ "Kirk Merritt: In COVID-19 protocol". CBSSports.com. December 15, 2020. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
  16. ^ "Kirk Merritt: Clears COVID-19 protocols". CBSSports.com. December 18, 2020. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
  17. ^ "Dolphins Sign Jake Rudock, Place Ryan Fitzpatrick On Reserve/COVID-19 List". MiamiDolphins.com. December 31, 2020. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  18. ^ "Dolphins' Kirk Merritt: Inks future contract". CBSSports.com. January 6, 2021. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  19. ^ "Roster Moves: Dolphins Announce Roster Moves - August 31". MiamiDolphins.com. August 31, 2021. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  20. ^ "New Orleans Saints sign running back Josh Adams and wide receiver Kirk Merritt to Reserve/Future contracts". NewOrleansSaints.com. January 24, 2022. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  21. ^ "New Orleans Saints make roster reductions to 53". NewOrleansSaints.com. August 30, 2022. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  22. ^ "New Orleans Saints announce practice squad additions". NewOrleansSaints.com. August 31, 2022. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  23. ^ "New Orleans Saints announce roster moves". NewOrleansSaints.com. September 21, 2023. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  24. ^ "Kirk Merritt: Cut from Saints' practice squad". CBSSports.com. September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  25. ^ Rachuk, Stephan (January 27, 2024). "United Football League (UFL) Agrees to Terms with 8 Players". Pro Football Newsroom. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  26. ^ a b "UFL Transactions". UFLBoard.com. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
  27. ^ @UFL_PR (August 19, 2024). "The #UFL has announced the following transactions" (Tweet). Retrieved August 20, 2024 – via Twitter.
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