There has been a surprise addition to the Virginia football depth chart. After serving as a backup for the Texas Longhorns for two seasons, Matthew Merrick will enroll with at Virginia and be added to their roster.
Merrick was a preferred walk on at Texas, and eventually left the team to focus on academics.
A report with Wahoo’s247 says that Merrick has three years of NCAA eligibility remaining, and will serve as a walk-on to the team after he finished his summer classes at Texas.
How much the familial connection played a role in getting Merrick to decide on Virginia isn’t known at this time.
However, Matthew’s father was a wide receiver for the Virginia football team from 1981-84, so there is reason to believe that played into the decision.
Coming out of high school, Merrick was respectfully rated as a three-star quarterback, and 43rd best at his position in the country. The 6-foot-3, 185-pound gunslinger has plenty of size to compete at the collegiate level, but he’ll need to show more than he did at Texas if he wants playing time.
The competition won’t be as steep as it was with the Longhorns. All the same, he’ll be entering a new system with a lot to learn.
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