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Matt Merritt

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Matt Merritt
Arizona Cardinals
TitleRunning backs coach
Personal information
BornGermany
Career information
PositionRunning back
High schoolIndian Hill (Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.)
CollegeCapital (2006–2009)
Career history

Matt Merritt (born January 5, 1988) is an American professional football coach who is the running backs coach for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the running backs coach at the University of Miami from 2024 to 2025.[1][2]

Merritt played college football at Capital University as a running back from 2006 to 2009 and he previously served as an assistant coach at the University of Miami, University of South Florida, Georgia Southern University, University of Tennessee, James Madison University, Elon University, Ohio Dominican University, Ohio State University and Capital University.

Early life

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Merritt was born in Germany, where he lived until the age of 11. His father is a native of Detroit, Michigan, and his mother is from Liberia. The family later moved to Belgium, where Merritt attended the International School of Brussels from 1999 to 2004. At age 16, Merritt moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, and finished his education at Indian Hill High School, graduating in 2006. During his time in Belgium, he played for the Raiders American football team and won a championship title.[2]

College

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Merritt played running back and wide receiver at Capital University from 2006 to 2009, recording 1,099 career rushing yards and 12 touchdowns. He contributed to two NCAA Division III playoff appearances, including 542 rushing yards in 2007.He earned a Bachelor of Arts in education from Capital in 2010. He later obtained dual master's degrees in 2016 from Ohio State University (Sport Management) and Ohio University (Coaching Education).[3]

Coaching career

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Early career

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Early collegiate and high school roles Merritt began coaching as a graduate assistant at Capital University in 2010. He then spent two seasons as a running backs coach and special teams coordinator at St. Charles Preparatory School (2011–2012).[4]

Ohio State

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From 2013 to 2015, Merritt served as an offensive graduate assistant and assistant running backs coach at Ohio State. During this time, the Buckeyes secured the 2015 National Championship and the 2016 Fiesta Bowl, and Merritt helped develop players like Ezekiel Elliott, Curtis Samuel, and Carlos Hyde.

Ohio Dominion

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In 2016, he was the running backs coach and special teams coordinator at Ohio Dominion.[5]

Elon

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Merritt established himself as a key offensive assistant while working under Curt Cignetti at two different programs. He first served as Cignetti's running backs coach and special teams coordinator at Elon from 2017 to 2018, where the Phoenix earned back-to-back FCS playoff berths.[5]

James Madison

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He then followed Cignetti to James Madison University (JMU) in 2019. During his time at JMU, Merritt's rushing unit contributed to a season that culminated in an appearance in the 2019 FCS National Championship game.[5][6]

Tennessee

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In 2020, the postponement of the NCAA FCS season to spring 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic led Merritt to depart James Madison. He had originally accepted the running backs coach position at UCF under Josh Heupel; however, when Heupel was subsequently hired as the head coach at Tennessee. Merritt ultimately joined Heupel in Knoxville as a senior offensive analyst for the 2021 season.[6]

Georgia Southern

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Merritt spent the 2022 college football season as the running backs coach at Georgia Southern, where he helped a Georgia Southern offense ranked No. 19 in FBS in total offense (468.6 ypg) and No. 30 in points (33.67 ppg).[6]

USF

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Merritt was hired by Alex Golesh at USF for the 2023 season. Serving as the Associate Head Coach and running backs coach, he oversaw a rushing attack that averaged over 182 yards per game, ranking near the top of the American Athletic Conference.[7]

Miami

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In 2024, Merritt joined Mario Cristobal's staff at the University of Miami. During the 2025 season, Merritt was instrumental in coaching a Hurricanes offense that ranked first nationally in total yards and points, leading the team to a 13–3 record and an appearance in the 2025 College Football Playoff National Championship game.[6] He coached at Miami from 2024 to 2025, where Mark Fletcher recorded 1,192 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2025.[7]

Arizona Cardinals

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On February 5, 2026, Merritt was hired by the Arizona Cardinals as their running backs coach under head coach Mike LaFleur. This marks Merritt's first full-time NFL coaching job, after previously doing two NFL coaching fellowships: in 2016 with the Cincinnati Bengals and in 2019 with the San Francisco 49ers, where he crossed paths with LaFleur.[8]

Personal life

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Merritt is married to Brittanie Merritt and they have two sons, Daniel and Thomas. His father is from Detroit, Michigan, and his mother is from Liberia. Merritt is fluent in German and French.[2]

References

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  1. ^ "Sources: Miami running backs coach Matt Merritt has accepted a..." ESPN. Retrieved February 12, 2026.
  2. ^ a b c "Georgia Southern football RB coach Matt Merritt brings worldly view". Retrieved February 12, 2026.
  3. ^ "Matt Merritt - Football Coach". Georgia Southern University Athletics. Retrieved February 12, 2026.
  4. ^ "Matt Merritt - Football Coach". Elon University Athletics. Retrieved February 12, 2026.
  5. ^ a b c "Matt Merritt - Football Coach". James Madison University Athletics. October 4, 2025. Retrieved February 12, 2026.
  6. ^ a b c d "Matt Merritt - Football Coach". USF Athletics. Retrieved February 12, 2026.
  7. ^ a b "Matt Merritt". University of Miami Athletics. March 3, 2024. Retrieved February 12, 2026.
  8. ^ "Cardinals to hire Matt Merritt as running backs coach". NBC Sports. February 5, 2026. Retrieved February 12, 2026.
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