According to a source, the Dolphins agreed to terms with Arkansas State receiver Kirk Merritt, who had 70 catches for 806 yards and 12 TDs last season. He had offers from 14 teams.
The 6-0 Merritt began his career at Oregon in 2015, where he caught five passes for 61 yards. Then he transferred to Texas A&M, where he was dismissed after being charged with indecent exposure.
According to judicial records, Merritt exposed his genitals to two athletic department tutors on consecutive days in October 2016.
Merritt’s attorney cited a “bad case of jock itch” as Merritt’s defense, according to the Houston Chronicle. One of the accusers disputed that defense in an interview with the Dallas Morning News.
The court required that Merritt write apology letters to the victims, according to the judicial records. He received two years of community supervision, a $500 fine and 40 hours of community service, according to court documents from Brazos County (Texas) judicial records.
He then enrolled at East Mississippi Community College -- the subject of two seasons of the Netflix documentary series Last Chance U -- for the 2017 season.
Arkansas State coach Blake Anderson told local reporters at the time that he and university leadership were involved in the decision to accept Merritt into Arkansas State before the 2018 season, and that he was vetted “very thoroughly.”
He thrived at Arkansas State, where he caught 83 passes for 1005 yards and seven touchdowns in 2018 and then had another strong season last year.
He can play slot and boundary and return kicks. Merritt averaged 25.3 yards on 27 career kick returns (nearly all of those at Arkansas State) and had one TD on a return.
“The Dolphins just picked up an absolute monster,” Anderson tweeted Saturday night.
