Brayden Manley

Appeared in 12 games and made five starts at defensive end … Totaled 18 tackles (11 solo, seven assisted), 3.0 tackles for loss for 20 yards, 3.0 sacks for 20 yards, one forced fumble, five quarterback hurries and one pass breakup … Ranked tied for third on the team in quarterback hurries, tied for fourth in sacks, tied for seventh in tackles for loss and tied for sixth in forced fumbles … Recorded three tackles, a half-tackle for loss and a half-sack in win over Gardner-Webb (Sept. 6) … Forced a fumble and registered a quarterback hurry at Wake Forest (Sept. 27) … Tallied two tackles, including a half-sack, versus Virginia Tech (Oct. 11) … Credited with two quarterback hurries against Syracuse (Oct. 25) … Posted three tackles and a quarterback hurry at NC State (Nov. 1) … Recorded a sack for an 11-yard loss against Pittsburgh (Nov. 22) … Finished the regular season with two tackles, a tackle for loss and sack versus No. 4 Georgia (Nov. 28) … Missed Pop-Tarts Bowl due to injury sustained during regular season … Named to all-ACC academic team in recognition of his performances on the field and in the classroom. 2024 Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Year and NCAA Division I FCS second-team all-America as a sophomore … Amassed 38 tackles, 18 tackles for loss, 9.5 tackles for loss, 10 quarterback hurries, two fumble recoveries, a forced fumble and two pass breakups over 13 games as a sophomore … Helped lead Mercer to an 11-3 record, SoCon championship and quarterfinals of the FCS playoffs in '24 … Notched season highs with eight tackles and 2.5 sacks against Western Carolina (Oct. 26, 2024) … Had a season-best three QB hurries against Furman (Nov. 23, 2024) … Had two TFL and a half sack against Rhode Island in second round of FCS playoffs … Had 1.5 TFL and a sack against eventual national champion North Dakota State in FCS quarterfinals … Played in all 12 games as a true freshman in 2023, finishing with 12 tackles, 5.5 TFL, 4.5 sacks and two forced fumbles. Named conference Defensive Player of the Year as a senior … Played both offense and defense … Coached by Michael Twichell. Majoring in literature, media and communication … Is one of six siblings in his family.