Conner Mertens

{{Infobox college football player

|name=Conner Mertens

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|school=Willamette Bearcats

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|currentposition=Placekicker

|class=File:Redshirt.svg Freshman

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|birth_date={{Birth based on age as of date|19|2014|1|29}}

|birth_place= Kennewick, Washington

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Tri-City Herald All-Area football second team (2012)

|highschool=Southridge (Kennewick, Washington)

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Conner Mertens (born {{Birth based on age as of date|19|2014|1|29|noage=1}}) is an American football placekicker for the Willamette Bearcats.{{cite news |last=Roemeling |first=Alisha |title=Willamette football player comes out as bisexual |date=January 29, 2014 |newspaper=USA Today |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2014/01/29/willamette-kicker-conner-mertens-college-football-player-gay-bisexual/5026673/ |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180615140755/https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2014/01/29/willamette-kicker-conner-mertens-college-football-player-gay-bisexual/5026673/ |archivedate=June 15, 2018 |url-status=dead |access-date=November 2, 2017 }}{{Cite news|url=https://www.queerty.com/meet-connor-mertens-kicked-barriers-college-sports-20180220|title=Meet Connor Mertens, who kicked down barriers in college sports|last=Reddish|first=David|date=2018-02-20|access-date=2018-06-15}} He was the first active college football player to publicly come out about his sexuality; he came out as bisexual.{{cite news |last=Corcoran |first=Tully |title='I'm bisexual': Kicker becomes first CFB player to publicly come out publicly |date=January 28, 2014 |work=FoxSports.com |url=http://msn.foxsports.com/college-football/story/report-division-iii-kicker-conner-mertens-tells-coaches-i-m-bisexual-012814 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140302181048/http://msn.foxsports.com/college-football/story/report-division-iii-kicker-conner-mertens-tells-coaches-i-m-bisexual-012814 |archivedate=March 2, 2014 |url-status=dead |access-date=February 16, 2014 }}{{Cite news|url=https://www.outsports.com/2014/1/28/5348936/conner-mertens-willamette-football-kicker|title=College football player Conner Mertens comes out|work=Outsports|access-date=2018-06-15}}

Early life

Mertens grew up in Kennewick in Tri-Cities, Washington, where he was the youngest of four boys in his family. Growing up, he always excelled at sports.{{cite AV media|title=The Conner Mertens Story|date=Feb 9, 2014|publisher=Fox Sports Live|time=0:52|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19iEE-3rG1A|accessdate=February 15, 2014}}{{cite news |last=Zeigler |first=Cyd |title=Conner Mertens came out to his college football team. Now he comes out publicly. |date=January 28, 2014 |work=Outsports.com |url=http://www.outsports.com/2014/1/28/5348936/conner-mertens-willamette-football-kicker |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140203223228/http://www.outsports.com/2014/1/28/5348936/conner-mertens-willamette-football-kicker |archivedate=February 3, 2014 |url-status=dead |access-date=February 16, 2014 }} He concentrated on athletics after an incident in fifth grade in which classmates teased him for remaining in costume and makeup after a drama competition.{{cite news |last=Schnell |first=Lindsay |title=Willamette's Conner Mertens talks about coming out as bisexual |date=February 14, 2014 |work=SI.com |url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/college-football/news/20140214/conner-mertens-willamette-university/ |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140219170743/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/college-football/news/20140214/conner-mertens-willamette-university/ |archivedate=February 19, 2014 |url-status=dead |access-date=February 16, 2014 }}

According to Mertens, the environment at Southridge High School was "hostile", as he was surrounded by a culture of homophobia.{{cite news |last=Landefeld |first=Bill |title=Mertens Hopeful for Change in Sports Culture |date=February 13, 2014 |newspaper=The Pioneer |url=http://whitmanpioneer.com/sports/2014/02/13/mertens-hopeful-for-change-in-sports-culture/ |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140221162846/http://whitmanpioneer.com/sports/2014/02/13/mertens-hopeful-for-change-in-sports-culture/ |archivedate=February 21, 2014 |url-status=dead |access-date=February 16, 2014 }} He said the Tri-Cities was not the most friendly area toward the LGBT community. In 2012, 63 percent of the area voted against a measure for same-sex marriage that was ultimately approved by the state. Starting with his sophomore year in high school, Mertens was active in Young Life, a national organization that preaches Christianity to youth. After being in trouble in his freshman year, he credited Young Life with turning his life around. In his senior year, Mertens was named the placekicker on the Tri-City Herald All-Area second team.{{cite news |last=Anthony |first=Kevin |title=Kennewick's Ramos is All-Area football player of the year |date=December 11, 2012 |newspaper=Tri-City Herald |url=http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2012/12/11/2202431/kennewicks-ramos-is-all-area-football.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222013859/http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2012/12/11/2202431/kennewicks-ramos-is-all-area-football.html |archivedate=February 22, 2014 |url-status=dead |access-date=February 16, 2014 }} He was also a four-year starter on Southridge's soccer team.{{cite news |last=Millikin |first=Jack |title=Boys soccer: Mid-Columbia Conference rekindles rivalries |date=March 27, 2013 |newspaper=Tri-City Herald |url=http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2013/03/27/2331983_boys-soccer-mid-columbia-conference.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222013857/http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2013/03/27/2331983_boys-soccer-mid-columbia-conference.html |archivedate=February 22, 2014 |url-status=dead |access-date=February 16, 2014 }}

College career

Mertens attended Willamette University, located in Salem, Oregon. The school's football team competes in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III. Mertens redshirted and did not play football in his freshman year due to an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury to his left knee from playing soccer.{{cite news |last=Quick |first=Jason |title=Kicking down barriers: Willamette's Conner Mertens says he is bisexual in hopes of ending stereotypes |date=January 28, 2014 |newspaper=The Oregonian |url=http://www.oregonlive.com/collegefootball/index.ssf/2014/01/kicking_down_barriers_willamet.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222211923/http://www.oregonlive.com/collegefootball/index.ssf/2014/01/kicking_down_barriers_willamet.html |archivedate=February 22, 2014 |url-status=dead |access-date=February 16, 2014 }}{{cite news |title=Active college player comes out |date=January 29, 2014 |work=ESPN.com |url=https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/10364727/conner-mertens-willamette-university-bearcats-comes-tells-teammates-bisexual |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140223235032/http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/10364727/conner-mertens-willamette-university-bearcats-comes-tells-teammates-bisexual |archive-date=February 23, 2014 |url-status=live |access-date=February 16, 2014 }} In January 2014, Mertens came out as bisexual, the first active college football player at any level to publicly come out. With his announcement, he was banned from working with Young Life, which he had been certain would be a part of the rest of his life; the organization's "Faith and Conduct Policies" did not allow any LGBT person to be a staff member or volunteer, though they could participate as "recipients of ministry of God's grace and mercy as expressed in Jesus Christ."

He became Willamette's kicker in 2014, when he also received limited opportunities as a punter.{{cite news |last=Zeigler |first=Cyd |title=Conner Mertens has triumphant first season as out college football player |date=December 10, 2014 |work=Outsports.com |url=http://www.outsports.com/2014/12/10/7371711/conner-mertens-season-football-player-willamette |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150912161040/http://www.outsports.com/2014/12/10/7371711/conner-mertens-season-football-player-willamette |archivedate=September 12, 2015 |url-status=dead |access-date=August 10, 2015 }}

Personal life

Mertens is featured in Out to Win, a documentary about LGBT participation in American sports.{{cite news |last=Bella |first=Timothy |title=Bisexual football player hopes sexuality will become 'nonissue' in NCAA |date=March 22, 2015 |work=aljazeera.com |url=http://america.aljazeera.com/watch/shows/america-tonight/articles/2015/3/22/sxdiaries-conner-mertens.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150814004941/http://america.aljazeera.com/watch/shows/america-tonight/articles/2015/3/22/sxdiaries-conner-mertens.html |archivedate=August 14, 2015 |url-status=dead |access-date=August 10, 2015 }}