Short-yardage / goal-line · enumeration
Who gets the tough yard
1/51Inside-5 share
1 of the team's 51 inside-the-5 carries (2.0%).
Merek Pierce
Last confirmed: SMU, 2019. No 2026 box-score games on record.
5′9″ · 200 lb · Frisco, TX
Merek Pierce: RB · SMU · #31.
Merek Pierce
Merek Pierce has played for two head coaches in three seasons at SMU. One game to point at: 19 rushing yards and 1 rushing TD against Texas State — Week 3, 2019.
How he plays
How he plays
News and fans
No outlet on our list has written about him by name this season.
SMU in the news
- Tyren Polley Jr. out for season
The Dallas Morning News Oct 20 - 4-star EDGE David Dotson commits to SMU
On3 Oct 11
Where to follow him
Career stats
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
Game log
Game log · Week-by-week
2019 season · 2 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 3 | W 47-17vs Texas State | 4 | 19 | 4.8 | 1 | 7 | Season-high 19 yds |
| Wk 5 | W 48-21@ South Florida | 6 | 12 | 2.0 | 0 | 4 | |
| Total | 10 | 31 | 3.1 | 1 | 7 |
Signature game
Week 3 · 2019
W 47-17
vs Texas State
19 rush yds (4 car) · 1 TD
Dominant 30-point win at home against Texas State.
With S. Buechele — 219 yds · 2 TD · 2 INT · QBR 59.9 · T. McDaniel — 159 rush yds (8 car) · 3 TD
Signature plays
The plays that mattered most
- Week 3 · Texas State · 1st and 4 · Q4 · EPA +1.69Merek Pierce run for 4 yds for a TD, (Luke Hogan KICK)
- Week 5 · South Florida · 3rd and 3 · Q3 · EPA +1.20Merek Pierce run for 3 yds to the SFla 40 for a
- Week 3 · Texas State · 3rd and 2 · Q4 · EPA +0.97Merek Pierce run for 7 yds to the TexSt 4 for a
- Week 5 · South Florida · 2nd and 6 · Q3 · EPA −0.40Merek Pierce run for 3 yds to the SFla 43
- Week 5 · South Florida · 2nd and 6 · Q3 · EPA −0.33Merek Pierce run for no gain to the SFla 10
- Week 5 · South Florida · 1st and 10 · Q3 · EPA −0.27Merek Pierce run for 3 yds to the SFla 37
3 more plays
- Week 3 · Texas State · 1st and 10 · Q4 · EPA −0.20Merek Pierce run for 2 yds to the TexSt 17
- Week 3 · Texas State · 2nd and 8 · Q4 · EPA +0.15Merek Pierce run for 6 yds to the TexSt 11
- Week 5 · South Florida · 1st and 10 · Q3 · EPA −0.02Merek Pierce run for 4 yds to the SFla 10
Teams and coaches
2017SMU7-6HC: Chad Morris · Balanced
2018SMU5-7HC: Sonny Dykes · Balanced
2019SMU10-3HC: Sonny Dykes · Balanced, fast tempo
Our ratings
Splits
Home and road splits, scheme and staff
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 2 games: 15.5 YDS/g, 3.4 YPC, 0.5 TD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Sonny Dykes
Pass share
48.7%
502 pass / 529 run
Plays / game
79.3
13 games
Team sack rate
3.0%
535 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced, fast tempo.
Awards
Player standing · 2019
10 carries in 2 games
Fewer touches a game than most FBS running backs who play every week.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Four seasons at SMU
- 2019 SMU DykesYear 4 · 2 games
- 2018 SMU DykesYear 3 · 2 games
- 2017 SMU MorrisYear 2 · 1 game
- 2016 SMU MorrisYear 1 · on the roster, no stat line
How it ended
Three seasons at SMU, 103 rushing yards — his college career is complete.
Coaching lineage · 2016–2019
2 coaches2016–2017
SMU
Coaching transition mid-career: Chad Morris → Sonny Dykes. Worth noting in scheme + development context.