Francis E. Merritt (July 20, 1920 – March 21, 1995) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

tackle who played college football at the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1996. He served as the

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches an ...

at the

United States Air Force Academy The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and U ...

from 1967 to 1974. A 1939 graduate, Merritt played prep football at St. Cecilia High School in Englewood, New Jersey, where he was captain of the state champion team."Francis Ellis Merritt"
p. 156 in ''Assembly'', March / April 1996, Volume 54, Issues 4-6. Accessed December 17, 2019. "He attended St. Cecilia's High School in Englewood, New Jersey, and was captain of their state champion football team. He graduated in 1939 and went on to Bullis Prep School, where he battled academics."

References

1920 births 1995 deaths American football offensive tackles Air Force Falcons athletic directors Army Black Knights football players College Football Hall of Fame inductees Players of American football from New York City St. Cecilia High School (New Jersey) alumni {{offensive-lineman-1920s-stub