University of Delaware Athletics
Blue Hen Alums Kerr and Reeder Set to Meet in Super Bowl LVI
2/8/2022 3:20:00 PM | Football
NEWARK, Del. – When fans tune into the biggest football game of the year on Sunday night, they will see two of the best to ever put on a Delaware uniform playing on the NFL's biggest stage. UD alums Zack Kerr and Troy Reeder will be suiting up against each other in Super Bowl LVI as Kerr will be playing nose tackle for the Cincinnati Bengals and Reeder will slot in at middle linebacker for the Los Angeles Rams.
Super Bowl LVI is set to kick off at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday, February 13 at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. Reeder and the Rams reached the Super Bowl by defeating the San Francisco 49ers 20-17 in the NFC Championship Game, coming back from a 17-7 fourth-quarter deficit. The NFC West champions were the No. 3 seed, defeating the Arizona Cardinals in the Wild Card Round and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Divisional Round. Kerr and the Bengals earned the AFC North crown and the No. 4 seed before defeating the Las Vegas Raiders (26-19), Tennessee Titans (19-16) and Kansas City Chiefs (27-24 OT). The latter two victories were on the road and were won on walk-off field goals.
Kerr and Reeder are two of just five players from both rosters to come from FCS programs, and Delaware is the only FCS school with two alums to be playing in this year's Super Bowl. The two Blue Hens become the 10th and 11th players in program history to play in the big game, and each will look to become the third to lift the Lombard trophy.
Kerr is in his eighth NFL season and playing for his sixth team. This year alone, he has played for three teams as he started the season with the San Francisco 49ers and also spent time with the Arizona Cardinals, his second stint with the organization. After the first round of the playoffs, the Bengals signed Kerr off of Arizona's practice squad and he has played in both the divisional round and AFC Championship Game. In his eight seasons, Kerr has appeared in 95 regular-season games and accumulated 173 tackles, 15 TFL and 9.5 sacks. This season marks his first appearance in the NFL playoffs and he has registered one tackle in his two games with the Bengals.
The Gaithersburg, Maryland native has played two seasons for the Blue & Gold after transferring from Maryland. He started every game during the 2012 and 2013 seasons, totaling 84 tackles including 43 solo takedowns. He had 10 TFL and 4.5 sacks while forcing two fumbles and intercepting one pass. Kerr earned All-CAA honors in both seasons as a Blue Hen, including a first-team selection in 2013 when he finished with 57 tackles, 5.5 TFL and 3.5 sacks. He was named an All-American by five different outlets.
Reeder is in his third NFL season, all coming with the Rams, after signing with Los Angeles as an undrafted free agent in 2019. He has appeared in all 49 games over the three years, making 25 starts at linebacker. He has made 230 total tackles over his short career with 11.0 TFL and 5.0 sacks. Reeder has enjoyed a breakout season in 2021, making 10 starts at middle linebacker and ranks third on the Rams with 91 tackles while intercepting two passes. In three playoff games, Reeder has been on the field for 91-percent of LA's defensive snaps recording 14 tackles and QB hit against the Arizona Cardinals that led to a pick-six for the Rams.
A local product out of Hockessin, Delaware, Reeder played three seasons in a UD uniform after transferring from Penn State. He played and started in all 34 games, finishing with 283 tackles, 25.0 TFL, 5.0 sacks and four interceptions. A three-time All-CAA selection, Reeder earned first-team honors in both 2017 and 2018. He was a Second Team All-American and a finalist for the Buck Buchanan Award in his final season when he led the CAA with 131 total tackles to go along with 13.5 TFL.
