Chris Merritt (American football)
| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Head coach |
| Team | Bryant |
| Conference | CAA |
| Record | 28–45 |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | December 7, 1969[1] |
| Playing career | |
| 1988–1992[2] | Indiana |
| 1994–1995 | Gavle Red Devils Sweden |
| 1996-1997 | Hamburg Blue Devils |
| Position | Free safety |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1993 | Eastern Illinois (assistant) |
| 1996–1998 | Hamburg Blue Devils (DC) |
| 1999 | Stuttgart Scorpions |
| 2000 | Thiel (DB) |
| 2001–2018 | Christopher Columbus HS (FL) |
| 2019–present | Bryant |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 28–45 (college) 52–11–1 (GFL) 165–49[n 1] (high school) |
Chris Merritt (born December 7, 1969) is an American football coach and former player. He was named to the position as the head football coach at Bryant University in December 2018. He came to Bryant after serving 18 years as head coach at Christopher Columbus High School in Miami, Florida, posting a record of 165–49 in 18 season there. He also served five years at Thiel College as the defensive backs coach and special teams coordinator and two years at Eastern Illinois University as an assistant coach. He also played and was a coach in the German Football League with the Hamburg Blue Devils winning the German Bowl and Eurobowl championships.
Football career
Merritt played college football at Indiana University Bloomington where he was four year letter winner. He played professionally in Sweden Superserien in 1994 and 1995 seasons. He the played and was a coach in the German Football League where he guided the Hamburg Blue Devils, winning 3 Eurobowl titles in 1996, 1997 and 1998, a German Bowl in 1996 and three-straight Charity Bowl Championships. Merritt is the franchises all-time leaders in wins and winning percentage[3]
He then coached the Stuttgart Scorpions and Theil.
In 2001 he became the head coach of Christopher Columbus HS, during his tenure he led the school to two state finals appearances (2014, 2018), five Regional Championships, 14 District Championships and an 80-4 record in district competition in the largest high school classification in the state of Florida. In addition, Merritt's program has produced over 100 collegiate football players in 18 seasons. He also received a plethora of honors including being inducted into the Columbus High School Hall of Fame in 2018, named the Nike Coach of the Year in 2005, the Miami Herald Coach of the Year in 2014 and the Warren Henry South Coach of the Year in 2017.[4]
He was then hired as head coach of Bryant for the 2018 season, in 2021 he went 7-4 and was named a finalist for the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year award. during the 2025 season he led the program to their first ever win over a FBS program on September 6th 27-26 over UMass.[5]
Head coaching record
College
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bryant Bulldogs (Northeast Conference) (2019–2022) | |||||||||
| 2019 | Bryant | 4–8 | 3–4 | T–5th | |||||
| 2020–21 | Bryant | 2–2 | 2–2 | T–3rd | |||||
| 2021 | Bryant | 7–4 | 5–2 | 2nd | |||||
| 2022 | Bryant | 4–7 | 2–3 | T–3rd | |||||
| Bryant Bulldogs (Big South–OVC Football Association) (2023) | |||||||||
| 2023 | Bryant | 6–5 | 4–2 | T–3rd | |||||
| Bryant Bulldogs (Coastal Athletic Association Football Conference) (2024–present) | |||||||||
| 2024 | Bryant | 2–10 | 0–8 | T–15th | |||||
| 2025 | Bryant | 3–9 | 1–7 | T-12th | |||||
| Bryant: | 28–45 | 17–28 | |||||||
| Total: | 28–45 | ||||||||
High school
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christopher Columbus Explorers () (2001–2018) | |||||||||
| 2001 | Christopher Columbus | 9–3 | 1st | ||||||
| 2002 | Christopher Columbus | 4–6[n 1] | 3rd | ||||||
| 2003 | Christopher Columbus | 7–4 | |||||||
| 2004 | Christopher Columbus | 7–3 | 4–0 | 1st | |||||
| 2005 | Christopher Columbus | 9–1 | 5–0 | 1st | |||||
| 2006 | Christopher Columbus | 7–4 | 4–1 | 2nd | |||||
| 2007 | Christopher Columbus | 11–1 | 5–0 | 1st | |||||
| 2008 | Christopher Columbus | 8–1 | 4–0 | 1st | |||||
| 2009 | Christopher Columbus | 9–2 | 5–0 | 1st | |||||
| 2010 | Christopher Columbus | 11–1 | 5–0 | 1st | |||||
| 2011 | Christopher Columbus | 11–2 | 3–0 | 1st | |||||
| 2012 | Christopher Columbus | 8–5 | 3–0 | 1st | |||||
| 2013 | Christopher Columbus | 7–5 | 4–1 | 2nd | |||||
| 2014 | Christopher Columbus | 14–2 | 6–0 | 1st | |||||
| 2015 | Christopher Columbus | 12–2 | 4–1 | 1st | |||||
| 2016 | Christopher Columbus | 7–4 | 4–1 | 2nd | |||||
| 2017 | Christopher Columbus | 10–2 | 4–0 | 1st | |||||
| 2018 | Christopher Columbus | 14–1 | 4–0 | 1st | |||||
| Christopher Columbus: | 165–49[n 1] | ||||||||
| Total: | 165–49[n 1] | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||
References and notes
- ^ "Chris Merritt". Twitter. Retrieved August 10, 2023.
- ^ "Chris Merritt". Sports Reference. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
- ^ "Chris Merritt named next Bryant Football head coach". Bryant University. December 20, 2018. Retrieved September 8, 2025.
- ^ "Chris Merritt - Head Coach - Football Coaches". Bryant University. Retrieved September 8, 2025.
- ^ "Bryant football stuns UMass for first-ever win over FBS opponent. Here's how". The Providence Journal. Retrieved September 8, 2025.
- ^ "Columbus Explorers". The Miami Herald. August 27, 2003. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
External links