WILMINGTON, North Carolina – UNCWSports.com will look at the members of the UNCW Department of Athletics staff with a weekly feature called "Seahawk Staff Spotlight." Each Tuesday, the website will profile a different member of the staff.

This week's edition profiles Wes Merrill, who serves as director of facilities and event management for the UNCW Department of Athletics. Merrill is a 2016 UNCW graduate who returned to his alma mater in April of 2018 as an assistant director of facilities and event management. He was elevated to his current role in November of 2019.

Merrill is one of three members of his family to have worked at UNCW. His brother, Mike, is a former staff member for the women's basketball program and his sister, Caroline, previously worked in Seahawk Sports Marketing.

What do you remember about your first day working at UNCW? 
I remember coming back and it was just really nice to see so many people that I used to work with as a student and catch up with them. It was also cool to walk around and see what has changed on campus and in our athletic areas.

What is one of your favorite memories of working at UNCW?
One of my favorite memories working at UNCW was witnessing Coach [Mark] Scalf's last game. It was just so cool to see the people there in support of him, including his family, the chancellor, the mayor and so many fans that stayed at the end of the game, and then being able to unveil the banner in left field retiring his number. It was a really cool experience.  

What does working at UNCW mean to you?
It means a lot as I started out as a student worker for the Facilities & Event Management staff, graduated here and now, I have the opportunity to better this department through my experiences here as a student and working at other institutions. Most people do not get to work for their alma mater and I was lucky enough to come back home.

If you were an athlete, what jersey number would you want to wear and why?
25 for basketball and 2 for baseball – they were my brother Michael's numbers.

Did you play sports in college? If so, what sport and where did you play?
No

Quick Hits
Favorite Food: Buffalo Chicken
Favorite Color: Blue
Favorite Fast Food: Chick-Fil-A
Favorite Movie: The Campaign
Favorite Actor/Actress: Leonardo DiCaprio
Favorite TV Show: Family Guy
Favorite Book: Hard Work by Roy Williams and Tim Crothers
What is One Thing People Don't Know About You?: I love to cook

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