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Merton Hanks

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He arguably had the coolest celebratory dance of the '90's, maybe better than the great Neon Deion. I vote for Hanks.

Merton Hanks
No. 36
Position:Safety
Personal information
Born: (1968-03-12) March 12, 1968 (age 56)
Dallas, Texas, U.S.
Height:6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:181 lb (82 kg)
Career information
High school:Lake Highlands (Dallas, Texas)
College:Iowa
NFL draft:1991 / round: 5 / pick: 122
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Tackles:496
Interceptions:33
INT yards:410
Touchdowns:3
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Merton Edward Hanks (born March 12, 1968) is an American former professional football player who was a safety for nine seasons in the National Football League (NFL) during the 1990s, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers.[1] He was a five-time All-Pro and four-time Pro Bowl selection with the 49ers, winning a Super Bowl (XXIX) with the team.

Hanks played college football for the Iowa Hawkeyes, earning All-American honors in 1990. He played eight seasons in the NFL with the 49ers and one with the Seattle Seahawks. He is currently a senior associate commissioner for the Pac-12.[2]

College career

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Hanks attended Lake Highlands High School, where he was a district track-and-field champion. He attended the University of Iowa, earning all-Big Ten honors at cornerback. However, at the NFL scouting combine, his 40-yard dash times were very slow, and he was not drafted until the fifth round by the San Francisco 49ers.[3]

Professional career

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Despite his low selection, Hanks was selected to four Pro Bowl and three All-Pro teams. He was well known for his interceptions and returns, as well as his unique "chicken dance" celebrations that were later emulated by basketball star Shaquille O'Neal.[4][5] He was a member of the 1994 San Francisco team that won Super Bowl XXIX. Hanks finished his career with the Seattle Seahawks, retiring in 1999.

Executive career

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Hanks was previously the assistant director of operations for the National Football League, and then the league's vice president of operations in charge of player conduct.[6] Hanks began his tenure as Conference USA senior associate commissioner in July 2016, a position in which he was responsible for the conference's football and baseball operations, including officiating, scheduling, game operations, player conduct and safety.[7] On September 8, 2020, Hanks became the senior associate commissioner, football operations for the Pac-12 conference.

Hanks regularly embarks on speaking tours.[8]

NFL career statistics

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Regular season

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Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
GP GS Comb Solo Ast Sck Int Yds Avg Lng TD FF FR Yds TD
1991 SF 13 8 37 — — 0.0 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 2 0 0
1992 SF 16 5 64 — — 0.0 2 5 2.5 4 0 0 0 0 0
1993 SF 16 14 67 — — 0.0 3 104 34.7 67 1 0 1 0 0
1994 SF 16 16 72 65 7 0.5 7 93 13.3 38 0 0 2 0 0
1995 SF 16 16 63 54 9 0.0 5 31 6.2 23 0 0 2 69 1
1996 SF 16 16 63 54 9 0.0 4 7 1.8 8 0 1 0 0 0
1997 SF 16 16 60 50 10 0.0 6 103 17.2 55 1 0 2 38 1
1998 SF 16 16 48 42 6 0.5 4 37 9.3 37 0 1 1 0 0
1999 SEA 12 1 22 15 7 2.0 2 30 15.0 23 1 0 0 0 0
Career 137 108 496 280 48 3.0 33 410 12.4 67 3 4 10 107 2

References

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  1. ^ "Merton Hanks". NFL.com. National Football League. Retrieved December 31, 2010.
  2. ^ "Pac-12 tabs ex-NFL star Hanks to run football ops". ESPN.com. August 20, 2020. Retrieved September 14, 2021.
  3. ^ "1991 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 7, 2023.
  4. ^ Gwen Knapp (December 21, 1997). "Dances with Hanks". sfgate.com. Retrieved October 16, 2011.
  5. ^ "While the spotlight shines mostly on Kobe and Shaq, it's - 12.01.97 - SI Vault". October 29, 2013. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved September 14, 2021.
  6. ^ Smith, Michael David (October 19, 2013). "Merton Hanks: I fined Ndamukong Suh to get his attention". Pro Football Talk. NBC Sports. Retrieved December 1, 2013.
  7. ^ "Conference USA - Staff Directory". conferenceusa.com. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  8. ^ "Hawkeye Sports News: Where are they now? Merton Hanks". July 11, 2011. Archived from the original on July 11, 2011. Retrieved September 14, 2021.

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