Stats via Hastings College Athletics. 2026 football season in progress.
Most of the schools recruiting Kaiden Merryman wanted half of him. They wanted the running back. Nobody wanted the sprinter too. Hastings College was different. “Hastings College was the first college to say they were all right with me doing both,” Merryman says.
It has paid off on both fronts. Since arriving from San Joaquin Delta College, the Lodi, California, native has led the Broncos with six rushing touchdowns, set the school record in the 60-meter dash, earned All-American honors on the track and been named Hastings’ Male Rookie of the Year. This September he ran for more than 200 yards against Concordia — including a 92-yard touchdown — and was named GPAC Offensive Player of the Week.
Ask him what the crimson means, though, and he doesn’t start with any of that.
It started at a youth Super Bowl
Merryman’s first football memory is a championship he didn’t decide. “My first real memory playing football was probably in 7th grade when we won the Super Bowl, the youth Super Bowl,” he says. “Even though I didn't score or do anything crazy in that game, that was the first game where I really, I guess, had emotion in. And since then, I always knew I wanted to play college football.”
The biggest influence on getting there was at home. “Definitely my dad,” he says. “He always pushed me to be the best version of myself and always wanted me to do what's best for me.”
The school that said yes to both
As a two-sport athlete, Merryman’s recruitment came down to a simple question: who would let him keep running? “Most of the schools that were recruiting me were only allowing me to play one sport,” he says. The answer told him something about the people. “I chose NAIA because the coaches were able to show that they cared for me.”
The coach who recruited him, Coach Nick, gave him a standard he still lives by. “It's not about winning or losing,” Merryman remembers him saying every day. “It's about getting 1% better every day.”
“I thought coming here was only going to be sports. And now that I’ve been here for a year and a couple months, I’ve made the greatest relationships, and I’m truly blessed.”— Kaiden Merryman, Hastings College football and track & field
Halfway across the country
Merryman says he hasn’t faced many setbacks at Hastings. The hardest part has been the distance. “Family is a big part of my life, and when I moved halfway across the country, it's hard for me to be able to communicate with them like I did before.”
Hastings has made the rest easier. Balancing practice, classes and personal time is going better than it did at his previous college, he says. “They take really good care of you and really give you the resources you need to be successful.”
Practice like you play
What he loves most about the Broncos is how they work. “We practice how we play. I would say our practices for the most part are the hardest practices I've ever seen from a college program,” he says. “They always push you to your limits. And they treat you like family, which is really important to me.”
That is what the jersey has come to mean. “Putting on Hastings Crimson means a lot more to me than just athletics. I've met my best friends here.”
Paying it forward
When Merryman arrived as a transfer from California, the older players showed up for him. “All the seniors treated me like family and gave me rides when I needed it,” he says. Now a senior himself, he wants to be that person for the next newcomer. “A lot of these kids come from out of state, some kids out of country, and they have no one really to talk to here.”
Hastings, he says, has shaped him well beyond the field. “I've grown a lot as a man. I've faced adversity, learned some leadership skills.” Being a student-athlete has also taught him to slow down and notice “the little stuff and just be grateful for it.”
For one of the fastest athletes in Hastings history, the mark he most wants to leave has nothing to do with speed: being the teammate the next kid far from home can turn to, the way someone once did for him.
Full interview transcript
Kaiden Merryman answered ten questions on camera for this story. His answers appear in full below, in his own words.
What's your first real memory of playing football — and when did you know you wanted to play in college?
Kaiden Merryman: My first real memory playing football was probably in 7th grade when we won the Super Bowl, the youth Super Bowl. And even though I didn't score or do anything crazy in that game, that was the first game where I really, I guess, had emotion in and since then, I always knew I wanted to play college football.
Who's had the biggest influence on your journey to becoming a Bronco?
Kaiden Merryman: I had a lot of huge big influences into me being a Bronco, but I think the biggest influence I had was definitely my dad. He always pushed me to be the best version of myself and always wanted me to do what's best for me.
What does a typical day look like for you balancing practice, academics, and personal time?
Kaiden Merryman: So being an athlete is all about balancing practice, academics, and even personal time. I'd say I'm having a way easier time doing it in Hastings than I was at my college before Hastings. They take really good care of you and really give you the resources you need to be successful.
What's a setback you've faced here, and how did you get through it?
Kaiden Merryman: I haven't really had any setbacks so far. I think the biggest setback I've had personally is being away from my family. Family is a big part of my life, and when I moved halfway across the country, it's hard for me to be able to communicate with them like I did before.
What's the best advice a coach or teammate has ever given you?
Kaiden Merryman: So the best advice a coach or teammate has ever given me is probably to get 1% better every day, and Coach Nick, the one who recruited me to Hastings, would tell me that every day. And he was like, it's not about winning or losing, it's about getting 1% better every day.
What makes putting on the Hastings crimson mean something to you?
Kaiden Merryman: Putting on Hastings Crimson means a lot more to me than just athletics. I've met my best friends here. I've created a lot of relationships here, and I think it's kind of crazy because I came from California. I thought coming here was only going to be sports. And now that I've been here for a year and a couple months, I've made the greatest relationships, and I'm truly blessed.
What do you love most about this team and the people in it?
Kaiden Merryman: So what I love most about this team is that we practice how we play. I would say our practices for the most part are the hardest practices I've ever seen from a college program. And the people in it, they're great. They always push you to your limits. And they treat you like family, which is really important to me.
What mark do you hope to leave on this program before you graduate?
Kaiden Merryman: So one mark I want to leave on this program is having your teammates be able to come up to you and talk to stuff like you are their family. A lot of these kids come from out of state, some kids out of country, and they have no one really to talk to here. So when I first came here, it was a big thing. All the seniors treated me like family and gave me rides when I needed it. And were just like great people to me.
NAIA's "Right Way to Play" is about who you become. Why did you choose an NAIA school, and how has the Bronco community shaped your character?
Kaiden Merryman: I chose NAIA because the coaches were able to show that they cared for me. If you didn't know, I'm a two-sport athlete, and most of the schools that were recruiting me were only allowing me to play one sport, and Hastings College was the first college to say they were all right with me doing both. And they shaped my character in a lot of ways. I've grown a lot as a man. I've faced adversity, learned some leadership skills, and some of those you can't really learn in the real world, and I feel like Hastings has really brought that.
How are you using your platform as a student-athlete to prepare for life after graduation?
Kaiden Merryman: I think being a student athlete has prepared me pretty good for life. It's taught me a lot of things like how to schedule your day around stuff and being able to take the little stuff and just be grateful for it.
