Courtesy of GoGriffs.com
Former Canisius men’s basketball player Chris Manhertz has signed a reserves/futures contract with the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League, the team announced today. A four-year letterwinner for the Golden Griffins, Manhertz is one of three players since 1942-43 to serve as a team captain for three seasons while wearing the Blue and Gold.
An NFL “reserves/futures contract” can be signed by any player not on a team’s roster at the end of the regular season. Typically, teams will sign their own practice squad players back to the team using reserve/futures contracts. Any player from a practice squad around the league is able to sign with any team. The players will be with the team through the offseason and preseason, trying to secure a roster spot.
On the hardwood, Manhertz played in 116 career games from 2010-14, where he made 94 starts. He averaged 6.5 points and 6.8 rebounds per game in his career where he shot 49.2 percent from the field and 71.8 percent from the free-throw line. A 2013-14 Preseason All-MAAC selection, the Bronx, N.Y., native finished his career ranked fourth in school history with 789 rebounds and he is one of three players since 1951 to lead the Griffs in rebounding in three consecutive seasons. Manhertz scored a career-high 17 points against Niagara Jan. 27, 2013 and he was credited with a career-best 18 rebounds at Marist Dec. 9, 2012. He ended his career with 14 double-doubles and he had 10 or more rebounds in a game 27 times in his career.
In his four years at the College, Manhertz served on Canisius’ Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and he earned his undergraduate degree in health and wellness. He also completed his master’s degree work in 2014, earning a master’s in sport administration from Canisius. He is the first Canisius student-athlete to sign a pro contract with the Buffalo Bills since former football player Tom Doctor was with the organization for training camp in 1988.
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