Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 1 game
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 2 | W 45-24@ Georgia Tech | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 2 tackles |
| Total | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
#25
Timothy Merritt
Sophomore defensive back on Tennessee's 2026 roster.
6′1″ · 194 lb · Birmingham, AL
Returning to Tennessee for 2026
Recruiting
3★
CB recruit
No. 507 nationally · Signed with Tennessee
No college snaps yet.
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
2 defensive back on Tennessee's 2026 roster.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to Tennessee in 2025.
Timothy Merritt
He has spent two seasons in the Tennessee secondary. The receipt: 2 tackles against Georgia Tech — Week 2, 2026.
2 TACKLES · 0 SACKS
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- seasons on the roster
- game log
His career
2025
- Signed with Tennessee3-star out of Parker
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
Tennessee
NFL
NFL Draft
—
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2 seasons under Josh Heupel — 10-5 over that span.
2025Tennessee8-5HC: Josh Heupel · Balanced
2026Tennessee2-0HC: Josh Heupel · Run-heavy
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Concern: tackles (0th percentile).
Box-score production (6)
Percentiles are versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score production. There are no play-by-play efficiency bars here: CFBD's play-value model credits offensive players only, so no defensive EPA exists to rank.
Splits & context
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 1 game: 2.0 TKL/g, 0.0 TFL/g, 0.0 SACK/g, 0.0 PD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Josh Heupel
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
Backup
On the two-deep and pushing for snaps.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Career stats
Game log
How he plays
2026 Outlook
Tennessee
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Defensive back · Tennessee
Returning around him
- 5 Tennessee players drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: -8 net (21 in / 29 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Tennessee · Last season: 8-5 (AP #18) · Talent rank #13 · 2026 recruiting class #8
The secondary · Tennessee
- #15Edrees Farooq76 tackles · 2025
- #42DJ Burks73 tackles · 2025
- #1TJ Metcalf58 tackles · 2025
- #4Ty Redmond43 tackles · 2025
- #25Timothy Merritt4 tackles · 2025
17 more on the roster · Tennessee team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology