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SMU has landed another JUCO transfer.

Chris Merrill (5-11, 180, 4.5) came out of Coppell High School two years ago as a mibile (option/running) quarterback. When it became clear that SMU signee Tony Eckert ran the offense more effectively, Merrill went to Tyler JC coach Dale Carr and proposed moving to WR. A solid overall athlete, Merrill can catch, run, cover on special teams, return kicks, etc. He also won Tyler JC's Iron Man Award, which is a test of overall athletic ability that combines sprints, strength, vertical jump, shuttle runs, etc., beating -- among others -- TCU signee CB Quincy Butler.

Merrill chose to attend SMU before the Ponies ever started recruiting Eckert. He will be a walk-on at SMU. He is enrolling in January and will participate in spring workouts.

<small>[ 01-04-2004, 01:43 PM: Message edited by: Casey ]</small>

He sounds like another Ted Barnhart (although a little bigger and faster) -- willing to do whatever necessary to get on the field. Can't have enough of those guys -- hope he pans out.

Kinda surprising.

Looked all over google for info. Can't find a dam thing on him.

<small>[ 01-04-2004, 06:16 PM: Message edited by: Dooby ]</small>

Well, he is a walk-on who changed positions in mid-season. So he wouldn't be a real headline-grabber anyway. But maybe there's a spot for a guy like that. Glad to see walk-ons who have a little experience under their belts, and it does sound like he's a pretty good athlete.

And I think "athlete" is the key word. Talent at the Junior and Senior level is still gonna be thin. I like adding athletes at any level, especially if they don't cost a scholarship.

Originally posted by Dooby:
And I think "athlete" is the key word. Talent at the Junior and Senior level is still gonna be thin. I like adding athletes at any level, especially if they don't cost a scholarship.

You and me, both. We'll have some talented upperclass players (so don't jump on me for bashing the older players) -- just not enough of them. So adding guys like this is vital.

Question: with Bennett's announcement that he plans to add 3 or 4 JUCO guys a year, would it be feasible for the coaches to host a JUCO Day at SMU, just like they have Junior Day for 11th graders? These are guys who couldn't come to camp at SMU, so a JUCO Day would be a great way to get them on campus to meet everyone, see the amazing facilities, etc.

Any plans like that in the works?

Yea, those underprivalaged Coppell kids are usually academically challenged out of high school. This kid might come from a JC, but you can be 99% sure he's not the kind of JC talent we are all talking about wanting to see at SMU in spots.

Originally posted by Hoop Fan:
Yea, those underprivalaged Coppell kids are usually academically challenged out of high school. This kid might come from a JC, but you can be 99% sure he's not the kind of JC talent we are all talking about wanting to see at SMU in spots.

Which is partly my point. It is scary if this kid ever sees the field. He isn't taking up a scholarship, anything we get out of this kid is a bonus.

Danger! I think we've jumped so far onto the JUCO bandwagon that we may have forgotten what JUCOs are for the most part... Kids that (for whatever reason) didn't have what it takes to get a scholarship to a "good" school. Talent, smarts, attention to academics, whatever.

So yes, they can be a short term fix for solving problems with older, more seasoned players. But on the whole, if they were good they would have gone to a D1-A school as freshmen. Obviously some of the upper echelon JUCO players are the exception, but that's only a handful of players.