Mervyn L. Fernandez (born December 29, 1959), nicknamed Swervin' Mervyn, is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player who was a wide receiver with the

BC Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions played their first season ...

in the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

(CFL) and

Los Angeles Raiders The Los Angeles Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Los Angeles from 1982 to 1994 before relocating back to Oakland, California, where the team played from its inaugural 1960 season to the 1981 season and then agai ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). Fernandez was a two-time CFL All-Star (

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

–

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

) and is a member of the BC Lions Wall of Fame. In

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

, Fernandez was voted a member of the BC Lions All-Time Dream Team, at the wide receiver position, as part of the club's 50-year anniversary celebration. In

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

, Fernandez was voted one of the CFL's Top 50 players (#42) of the league's modern era by Canadian sports network TSN.

High school & college career

Fernandez was a standout wide receiver for Andrew Hill High School in

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...

, where he picked up his famous nickname "Swervin' Mervyn" from the team's quarterback. Following high school, Fernandez played at DeAnza Junior College in

Cupertino, California Cupertino ( ) is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States, directly west of San Jose on the western edge of the Santa Clara Valley with portions extending into the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. The population was 57,8 ...

, before finishing his college career at nearby

San José State University San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a public university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the oldest public university on the West Coast and the founding campus of the California State University (CSU) sy ...

. It was at San José State that the

staff members took notice of the 6′3″, 205 pound, speedy wide receiver, and the Raiders eventually made Fernandez their 10th round pick in the

1983 NFL Draft The 1983 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 26–27, 1983, at the New York She ...

Canadian Football League career

Fernandez spent his entire six-year

CFL The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

career (1982-1986, 1994) with the

. Fernandez joined the Lions in

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...

, and made an immediate impact, finishing his rookie season with over 1,000 receiving yards (1,046), and helping his team to 9–7 record. Fernandez won the CFL Western Division Most Outstanding Rookie award, and was a finalist for the CFL's Most Outstanding Rookie award as well. After two 1,000-yard seasons, Fernandez was a key component in the

Grey Cup The Grey Cup (french: Coupe Grey) is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested be ...

championship season of

. Fernandez finished the season with 95 catches and 1,727 yards for an 18.2 yards per reception average, along with 15 touchdowns. Despite being injured and not playing in the game, following the Lions' 37–24 triumph over the

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Tim Hortons Fiel ...

in the

73rd Grey Cup The 73rd Grey Cup was the 1985 Canadian Football League championship game that was played at Olympic Stadium in Montreal, between the BC Lions and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. The Lions easily handled the Tiger-Cats with a 37–24 victory. Game summ ...

, Fernandez became the first Lion to win the

CFL's Most Outstanding Player Award The Most Outstanding Player Award is annually awarded to the best player in the Canadian Football League. The two nominees for the award are the Terry Evanshen Trophy winner from the East Division, and the Jeff Nicklin Memorial Trophy winner from ...

. Fernandez, a two-time CFL All-Star (

) and member of the BC Lions Wall of Fame, was finally persuaded by

Al Davis Allen Davis (July 4, 1929 – October 8, 2011) was an American football coach and executive. He was the principal owner and general manager of the Oakland Raiders of the National Football League (NFL) for 39 years, from 1972 until his death in ...

and the Raiders to head south and join the NFL, following the 1986 CFL season. In

, Fernandez was voted a member of the BC Lions All-Time Dream Team, at the wide receiver position, as part of the club's 50-year anniversary celebration. In November

, Fernandez was voted one of the CFL's top 50 players (#42) of the league's modern era by Canadian sports network TSN.

National Football League career

Fernandez spent his entire 6-year NFL career (1987-1992) with one team: the

. During that span, Fernandez played in 86 games and amassed 209 catches for 3,764 yards and 19 touchdowns. While Fernandez never made the

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

, he did leave his mark on the Raiders’ record books. His 209 career catches are 10th most by any receiver in Raiders’ history. His 3,764 career receiving yards ranks him number 8 all-time. His 18.01 average yards per catch for his career is first among any receiver to wear the Raiders' Silver and Black. In

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

, Fernandez led NFL receivers in average yards per catch (26.0). Arguably, Fernandez's finest year was 1989, when he made 57 catches for 1,069 yards and 9 touchdowns, leading all Raiders’ receivers in almost every major category, and becoming only the sixth Raider to gain over 1,000 receiving yards in a season.

Post-football life

Fernandez currently lives in

Morgan Hill, California Morgan Hill is a city in Santa Clara County, California, at the southern tip of Silicon Valley, in the San Francisco Bay Area. Morgan Hill is an affluent residential community, the seat of several high-tech companies, and a dining, entertainmen ...

and works as a

sales representative Sales are activities related to selling or the number of goods sold in a given targeted time period. The delivery of a service for a cost is also considered a sale. The seller, or the provider of the Goods and services, goods or services, c ...

. He is also an avid sport fisherman. His son, Joe Fernandez, was a wide receiver at

Fresno State University California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California. It is one of 23 campuses in the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers bache ...

, who tried out but failed to make the final roster of the NFL's

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

. He was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 2019

References

External links

CFL Historical B.C. Lions - Mervyn Fernandez
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fernandez, Mervyn 1959 births Living people African-American players of American football American players of Canadian football American football wide receivers BC Lions players Canadian football wide receivers Canadian Football League Most Outstanding Player Award winners De Anza Dons football players Los Angeles Raiders players People from Merced, California San Jose State Spartans football players African-American players of Canadian football Canadian Football League Rookie of the Year Award winners Players of American football from San Jose, California Players of Canadian football from San Jose, California National Football League replacement players 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople