Search the Community

Alec Morris, who transferred to North Texas in January, has done “really well” this offseason, Mean Green offensive coordinator Graham Harrell told AL.com. “Early on, he was playing better than anyone else was, and we just had to advance someone as quickly as possible, and we tried to do that with him,” said Harrell, who is also the quarterback coach. “That’s kind of where he sits. We expect him to have a good fall camp. And if he does, then I’d expect he could be the starter easily around here.” Morris, who was at Alabama from 2012-15 but attempted just one pass, received the bulk of the reps as North Texas’ first-team quarterback during spring practice. His competition at the position includes junior Quinn Shanbour, sophomore Connor Means and redshirt freshman Caleb Chumley. Morris, who is eligible to play immediately this season as a graduate transfer, opted to transfer in hopes of landing a starting job. “It was definitely a difficult decision to leave Alabama. No doubt,” said Morris, who is from Allen, Texas, which is about 40 miles from UNT’s campus in Denton. “One thing that made it easier was that I had been around Alabama quite a long time. I had seen a lot of my really close friends graduate and leave, so the amount of relationships I had as far as truly close friends just being around, a fifth-year senior, guys graduate and they move on.” Read more: http://gridironnow.com/former-alabama-qb-alec-morris-north-texas/

Good day, great weather... here are some brief thoughts: - Wow #5 Alec Morris the quarterback impressed the hell out of me. Powerful arm, great touch on the ball... he's the QB we always wanted but never had. Looks like a leader. He's got great size. I like how he wears the lineman,manly-type shoulder pads as opposed to the Garo Yerpremian ones Mini wore. Guy has an attitude and he seemed to be having a lot of fun out there today. - It's interesting to see Littrell (wearing a grey shirt and whistle) and Harrell work together with the offense. It's a very rhythmical thing - they have music of all types (Rap, county etc) going on loudly in the background and things seems to be moving and going constantly, I only saw Littrell go off once, there are not the huge Chico or Mac blowups, no Simmonds screaming. I did not hear Tommy's scratchy voice during special teams section. Much of a lower tone but intense. - -There were some amazing throws and amazing receptions today. Morris had the best throws but I though Shanbour had a couple and even Chumley made a couple nice plays. Morris gets double of the reps of the other guys. Unfortunately, Means struggled. He had one really bad long duck that they pulled him out on. He just doesn't seem to have progressed and his arm pales in comparison to Morris. Tee Goree looked taller to me. He was playing a lot with the 1's. -- Not as much contact as other regimes. In the scrimmage they hit hard but I didn't see the Oklahoma type drills as much. Of course this was one day. All the QB's are wearing red shirts and can't be hit. -- I wish they would put a red shirt on Jeffery Wilson because he REALLY looks good right now. He had a long TD run around the end where there was not anyone who could catch him. - Ekelor is very active and loud. I was surprised, he's actually a little shorter than Littrell but sort of looks like Littrell out there. He was working on a lot of technique items with the linebackers. I liked what Courtney Finney and Braelon Schwartz did today. - Nate Brooks made some nice plays on the receivers and Ashton Preston did as well. - We have a lot more tall athletic receivers than we have probably ever had. - Willie Ivery had an amazing over the shoulder long touchdown catch perfectly placed by Morris that had the entire coaching staff congratulating him. There were more catches than drops and better routes and passing than I saw at many Mac practices. Just seems like this staff is letting the receivers play. All the coaching seems to be technique based as opposed to scheme or plays. Everything play wise seems simple and fluid. EVERYTHING is shotgun btw. - Lines still look small to me, especially d-line. I like the look of Wegeman. I could see him step in for Austin Orr this season. Jareid Combs made a few nice plays. - Tight end is a work in progress. I like the look and attitude of Dillman. I didn't catch much of Kelvin. Just seem young and low numbers there as opposed to recent years. Then again, will he use a tight end. Seemed to me he was focused more on h-back and fullback today. - There is a fullback that Littrell seems to like. I think his name is Cameron Maki. I saw him spending a lot of time with him and coaching him etc. Good looking athlete. Final thought --- really need to keep Morris healthy. He elevates the program to a higher level on his ability alone. After him there is a pretty steep drop off although I think Shanbour won't kill us... it's still an issue to the point of, I am not sure I would let him run too much for fear of having him injured. He is a senior DT right now but with a much higher ceiling because of his accuracy. Second thought -- this team has some decent players. Mac did not leave the cupboard completely empty, It's still too small and way too thin on the defensive line however. I think the skill positions are very competitive for C-USA. The QB position is a HUGE upgrade with Morris however and that is a good reason to be excited about this season. GMG EDIT -- I forgot that #11 Thadeous Thompson had a nice long grab that was close to Ivery's in terms of positive response from the coaching staff. He's a another guy that is impressive in pads and seems to have good speed.

GoMeanGreen.com UNT Football 2016 Signing Class 1). WR - Deion Hair-Griffin (5-8, 150) Fort Worth, Texas (Arlington Heights HS) [June 15th] Signed LOI • Two-star Rivals, Scout, 247 and 247 composite recruit. • 165th-ranked athlete in the nation according to the 247 rankings. • 180th-ranked athlete in the nation according to the 247 composite rankings. • 303rd-ranked recruit in Texas according to the 247 rankings. • 354th-ranked recruit in Texas according to the 247 composite rankings. • District 7-5A MVP as a senior and junior. • As a junior, helped lead Arlington Heights to the area round of the Texas 5A Division I UIL State Football Championships. • Led Arlington Heights back to the Texas 5A Division I state playoffs as a senior. • As a dual-threat quarterback, completed 107-of-177 passes for 1,895 yards with 25 touchdowns. • Also rushed 111 times for 1361 yards and another 23 touchdowns during his senior season. • Threw for another 1,595 yards and 17 touchdowns and rushed for another 682 yards and 11 touchdowns as a junior. 2). OL - TJ Henson (6-5, 305) Plano, Texas (Plano East HS/Trinity Valley JC) [Dec 16th] Mid-term signee Signed LOI • Played tackle at Trinity Valley but can also play guard or center. • Two-time second-team District 10-5A selection at Plano East Senior High his senior and junior years. • Chose North Texas over offers from Iowa State, Nevada and East Carolina. 3). DE - Joshua Wheeler (6-3, 240) Grand Prairie, Texas (South Grand Prairie HS/Tyler JC) [Dec 17th] Mid-term signee Signed LOI • Honorable mention All-American in 2015 and finished third in the nation with 16 sacks. • Notched 9.5 tackles for loss to go along with 49 tackles in 10 games last season for Tyler Junior College. • Wheeler finished his career at Tyler Junior College with 25 sacks. 4). DE - Joseph Ozougwu (6-3, 230) Houston, Texas (Alief Taylor HS) [Dec 17th] Mid-term signee Signed LOI • Finished his senior season with 78 tackles, 12 tackles for loss and eight sacks. • An all-district 23-5A player and a team captain. • Enrolled at North Texas in the fall and will join in the football team in the spring. • His older brother Cheta Ozougwu played at Rice and was a seventh-round draft pick of the Houston Texans. 5). DT - Bryce English - (5-11, 295) DeSoto, Texas (DeSoto HS/Kansas State) [Jan 5th] Mid-term signee (Kevin Patrick) Signed LOI • Redshirted at Kansas State in 2015 before transferring to North Texas. • Rated the 30th-best defensive tackle in the nation by Rivals.com, 35th by ESPN and 40th by Scout.com. • His senior season, English had 56 tackles, 14 tackles for loss, six sacks and three forced fumbles. • Named the 2014 District 8-6A co-Defensive Player of the Year. • Earned honorable mention all-state honors from the Texas Associated Press Sports Editors and all-area honors from the Dallas Morning News. • His father, Lee, played at North Texas from 1978-81 and was a four-year letterman as a running back, rushing for 1,028 yards and five touchdowns. 6). QB - Alec Morris - (6-3, 233) Allen, Texas (Allen HS/Alabama) [Jan 12] Mid-term signee Signed LOI • A graduate transfer from Alabama, will be eligible for the 2016 season. • Spent four seasons at Alabama and was with the Crimson Tide during their national championship seasons in 2012 and 2015. • Served as Alabama's No. 3 quarterback in 2014 and 2015 and saw action in three games in 2015 and four games in 2014. • At Allen, Rivals.com rated him 30th among pro-style quarterbacks and Scout.com rated Morris as the 37th best quarterback. • Averaged 270.7 passing yards a game in 2011 with 35 touchdown passes, and threw for 2,534 yards and 22 touchdowns as a junior in 2010. 7). WR - Rico Bussey - (6-2, 175) Lawton, Oklahoma (Lawton HS) [Jan 17] (Graham Harrell) Signed LOI • Three-star 247 recruit. • Two-star Rivals, Scout and 247 composite recruit. • 12th-ranked recruit in the state of Oklahoma according to the 247 rankings. • 29th-ranked recruit in the state of Oklahoma according to the 247 composite rankings. • 159th-ranked wide receiver in the nation according to the 247 rankings. • 301st-ranked wide receiver in the nation according to the 247 composite rankings. • Member of The Daily Oklahoman Super 30. • Accounted for 2,059 all-purpose yards as a senior and 1,805 all-purpose yards as a junior. • Caught 74 passes for 833 yards and 13 touchdowns as a senior. • Rushed 62 times for 508 yards and three touchdowns as a senior. • Hauled in 66 passes for 1,233 yards and 15 touchdowns as a junior. 8). DB - Khairi Muhammad - (5-9, 170) DeSoto, Texas (DeSoto HS) [Jan 19] (Troy Reffett) Signed LOI • Two-star Scout, 247 and 247 composite recruit. • 199th-ranked athlete in the nation according to the 247 composite rankings. • 362nd-ranked athlete in the nation according to the 247 rankings. • 426th-ranked athlete in Texas according to the 247 composite rankings. • 443rd-ranked athlete in Texas according to the 247 rankings. • Honorable mention All-District 8-6A selection playing wide receiver as a senior. • Hauled in 21 passes for 269 yards and two touchdowns as a senior. • On the defensive side, totaled 26 tackles and broke up four passes playing cornerback as a senior. • His cousin is fellow North Texas signee Bryce English, another DeSoto High School product. 9). DB - Dee Baulkman - (5-10, 200) Yuma, Arizona (Arizona Western CC) [Jan 24] (Mike Ekeler) Signed LOI • Two-star Rivals, 247 and 247 composite recruit. • As a sophomore at Arizona Western, totaled 56 tackles, intercepted a pass and recovered a fumble. • Helped lead Arizona Western to a 7-4 record and a win in the El Toro Bowl. • Was teammate of fellow signee Darius Turner at Arizona Western. 10). QB - Mason Fine - (5-10, 170) Locust Grove, Oklahoma (Locust Grove HS) [Jan 25] (Graham Harrell) Signed LOI • Two-star Rivals, 247 and 247 composite recruit. • 27th-ranked recruit in Oklahoma according to the 247 rankings. • 34th-ranked recruit in Oklahoma according to the 247 composite rankings. • 91st-ranked pro-style quarterback in the nation according to the 247 rankings. • 119th-ranked pro-style quarterback in the nation according to the 247 composite rankings. • MaxPreps Small Schools All-American Team selection. • The first and only two-time Oklahoma Gatorade Player of the Year. • Set Oklahoma high school career records for passing yards (13,081) and touchdown passes (166). • His 13,081 yards ranks eight nationally in high school football history, and his 166 touchdowns is tied for fifth nationally in high school football history. • Helped lead Locust Grove to a 42-8 record, including a 37-3 record in his final three years. • As a senior, completed 251-of-284 passes for 4,227 yards with 53 touchdowns, leading Locust Grove to the Class 3A state quarterfinals. • Completed 329-of-485 passes for 5,006 yards with 71 touchdowns, leading Locust Grove to the state semifinals during his junior season. 11). DB - Darius Turner - (6-1, 172) Nashville, Tennessee (Arizona Western CC) [Jan 30] Signed LOI • Two-star 247 recruit. • As a sophomore at Arizona Western, totaled 22 tackles with two pass break-ups. • Helped lead Arizona Western to a 7-4 record and a win in the El Toro Bowl. • Teammate of fellow signees Dontavious Baulkman and William Johnson at Arizona Western. • All-Metro and all-conference choice as a senior at McGavock High School in Nashville. • Participated in the 2010 Tennessee East vs. West All-Star Game 12). LB - William Johnson - (6-3, 225) Coral Springs, Florida (Pompano Beach HS/Arizona Western CC) [Jan 30] • Four-star 247 and ESPN recruit; three-star Rivals, Scout and 247 composite recruit. • Member of the ESPN Junior College 50 and Rivals Juco 100. No. 2 junior college outside linebacker and No. 17 junior college recruit according to the 247 rankings. • No. 3 junior college outside linebacker and No. 43 junior college recruit according to the 247 composite rankings. • No. 3 junior college outside linebacker and No. 25 junior college recruit according to ESPN. • No. 8 junior college linebacker and No. 77 junior college recruit according to Rivals. • Ranked third on Arizona Western with 74 tackles and fourth with 11.5 tackles for loss. • Helped lead Arizona Western to a 7-4 record and a win in the El Toro Bowl. • Teammate of fellow signees Dontavious Baulkman and Darius Turner at Arizona Western. 13). OL - Chandler Anthony - (6-7, 280) Tuttle, Oklahoma (Tuttle HS) [Jan 31] Signed LOI • Two-star Rivals, 247 and 247 composite recruit. • 192nd-ranked offensive tackle according to the 247 rankings. • 199th-ranked offensive tackle according to the 247 composite rankings. • 33rd-ranked player in the state of Oklahoma according to 247 and 247 composite rankings. • Second-team All-State selection and Little All-City section on the Daily Oklahoma's teams. • Selected to the Oklahoma Coaches Assocation's All-State game. As a senior, helped lead Tuttle to a 10-0 undefeated regular season and the Oklahoma Class 4A playoffs. 14). RB - Nic Smith - (5-10, 175) Arlington, Texas (Martin HS) [Jan 31] Signed LOI • Three-star ESPN, Scout, 247 and 247 composite recruit; two-star Rivals recruit. • 57th-ranked running back in the nation according to the 247 rankings. • 86th-ranked running back in the nation according to the 247 composite rankings. • 123rd-ranked recruit in Texas according to the 247 rankings. • 156th-ranked recruit in Texas according to the 247 composite rankings. • 13th-ranked running back in Texas and the Midlands region, and 75th-ranked running back in the nation according to Scout. • 118th-ranked running back in the nation, 220th-ranked Texas recruit, 287th-ranked Midlands regional recruit according to ESPN. • All-time leading scorer in Arlington ISD and the leading rusher in school history. • Rushed for 3,803 yards and 66 touchdowns for his career, including 1,828 yards and 35 touchdowns as a junior and 1,439 yards and 19 touchdowns as a sophomore. • Despite missing part of his senior season, rushed 98 times for 536 yards and 12 touchdowns. • Helped lead Arlington Martin to three straight 10-3 season and three-straight appearances in the regional round of Texas state playoffs. • High school teammate of fellow signee Tyler Wilson. 15). WR - Tyler Wilson - (5-10, 170) Arlington, Texas (Martin HS) [Jan 31] Signed LOI • Two-star 247 recruit. • 356th-ranked wide receiver in the nation according to the 247 rankings. • 406th-ranked recruit in Texas according to the 247 rankings. • Two-time district utility player of the year. • Accounted for 2,615 all-purpose yards and 21 total touchdowns during his junior and senior season. • As a senior, rushed 29 times for 285 yards and four touchdowns, caught 48 passes for 770 yards and six touchdowns, and returned 14 kicks for 587 yards and three touchdowns. • Helped lead Arlington Martin to three straight 10-3 season and three straight appearances in the regional round of Texas state playoffs. • High school teammate of fellow signee Nic Smith. 16). DB - Jameel Moore - (5-10, 170) Cedar Hill, Texas (Cedar Hill HS) [Feb 1] Signed LOI • Two-star Rivals, Scout, 247 and 247 composite recruit. • 236th-ranked cornerback in the nation according to the 247 rankings. • 256th-ranked cornerback in the nation according to the 247 composite rankings. • 362nd-ranked recruit in Texas according to the 247 composite rankings. • 383rd-ranked recruit in Texas according to the 247 rankings. • Second team All-District 8-6A selection as a senior. • As a senior, helped lead Cedar Hill to a 9-2 record and a bi-district round of the Texas 5A Division I UIL State Football Championship. • Member of a Texas 6A Division II UIL State Championship team. 17). LB - Ejiya Ejodamen - (6-3, 235) Minneapolis, Minnesota (Spring Lake Park HS/North Dakota College of Science) [Feb 1] Signed LOI • NJCAA All-America honorable mention. • Totaled a team-high 62 tackles and four sacks. • Helped lead North Dakota SCS to an 8-3 record, a division championship and an appearance in the Minnesota College Athletic Conference state championships. • Second-team all-state selection and first-team all-Metro selection at Spring Lake Park High School in Minneapolis. 18). OL - Cody Hayes - (6-5, 305) Fort Worth, Texas (Eastern Hills HS/Navarro JC) [Feb 3] Signed LOI • Three-star 247 recruit. • 15th-ranked junior college offensive tackle and 14th-ranked junior college recruit in the state of Texas according to 247. • 162nd-ranked junior college recruit in the nation according to 247. • First-team All-Southwest Junior College Athletics Conference selection. • Helped lead Navarro to a 7-4 record and an appearance in the Southwest Junior College Football Conference championship. • Consensus three-star prospect coming out of Eastern Hills High School in Fort Worth. 19). LB - La'Darius "Hambone" Hamilton - (6-3, 245) Corrigan, Texas (Corrigan-Camden HS) [Feb 3] Signed LOI • Three-star 247 and 247 composite recruits, two-star Rivals and Scout recruit. • 46th-ranked strong-side defensive end according to the 247 rankings. • 88th-ranked strong-side defensive end according to the 247 composite rankings. • 144th-ranked recruit in Texas according to the 247 rankings. • 219th-ranked recruit in Texas according to the 247 composite rankings. • First team all-district selection as a junior and senior. • Totaled 83 tackles with three forced fumble and two fumble recoveries as a senior. • As a senior, helped lead Corrigan-Camden to an 8-5 record and the regional round of the Texas 3A Division II UIL State Football Championships. • As a junior, helped lead Corrigan-Camden to a 10-2 record and the area round of the Texas 3A Division II UIL State Football Championships. • Named the District 12-2A-DII defensive newcomer of the year as a sophomore.

This won't be as comprehensive as the one I did for McNulty due to time constraints, but I'll be nitpicky nonetheless. I used film both from high school highlights and that provided by Alabama (spring games and drills). So it's not much to go by but enough to notice some tendencies. Here are my notes Pros Relaxed in the pocket Calm, composed, and poised High "football IQ" (pardon my Jay Gruden, man) Safe Decent arm Good size Accurate and can pick apart a zone. Comes from powerhouse school, so has good coaching ($$) Mechanics Good deep ball Good rhythm, passes at top of drop Can extend plays under pressure Cons No FBS experience as a grad transfer Slight accuracy issue in intermediate range (nitpicky here) When dropback and throw is rushed, footwork affected Off-balance throws can vary Sometimes stares down receiver A bit indecisive Here are some of my thoughts I'll come out and say this: I have no idea what to expect from Morris. He's a strong, pro-style QB with lots of polish and poise. A very typical Alabama QB. I think his game managing label is only due to his size and association with Alabama. He can toss it around if need be, while being safe with the ball. My knock is that he doesn't come with the experience that guys like Driskel did. Couldn't beat out Blake Sims or Jay Coker while at Alabama. Was praised by Saban, though. His downfield ball is different than Smith's. Smith is more of a throw them open type, while Morris employs more technique and precision. Either style is fine by me as long as it works. He's a big guy (and strong) at 6'3" 233lbs. He has a very pretty, very expensive ($$) throwing motion. He's obviously had solid personal coaching. He is able to read a defense (omg!) pre-snap. While extending a play, he can manipulate defenders down the field in order to get his guy open for positive yards. Otherwise, he'll safely throw it away. Needs to be a quicker decision-maker. Has good anticipation. He is very relaxed in his drop backs, and passes in rhythm at the top of his drop. Very aware of the plays, but sometimes hones in on one guy. When plays break down, he can extend plays if he has room. If he rushes his motions, sometimes he spreads his feet a little too far apart, causing some of his passes to sail. Frequently throws passes slightly behind if he has to throw them low. Emphasis on the slightly. Still catchable balls, but the kind where the receiver has to slow down or use extra effort. If he has to throw them high, on target and in stride. The thing here, fellas, is that Morris has the ability to analyze the situation, decide and then place the ball either high or low in a catchable spot. He can decide to sidearm a pass when things get a little tight. Thas nice. He has the ability to place the ball between defenders, left or right, high or low. McNulty had this ability, but only high or low, and a ball with no arc. Morris has the ability to arc it very well between the high and low defender. Morris can succeed here with the right, downfield offense. It doesn't have to be pro-style, as he lined up in 3 wide, shotgun sets frequently in Alabama. Side shot: DSmith's accuracy issues can be masked with the right playcalling. I think Goree and Bradley (I'll keep tooting this horn), and Dillman can put up numbers with Morris. I would like to know who the slot receiver ends up being. That's all I can remember for now.

I found this post on another site and wanted to share. "The skinny on Alec Morris. Why he went under the radar and other info. Allen High School is a 5A school in Texas that graduates classes of over 1200 kids, the talent pool is deep. He might have started as a sophomore, except the senior was a D1 commit to TCU so Alec played JV to get the reps. Allen High School also has a very balanced game, so Alec isn't the focus of our offense every play. We have a running back that that is a D1 commit, and his highlights are also impressive. Several of these highly rated quarterbacks are all the offense most teams have, which gives them lots of publicity. Alec has also never been to a football camp until the summer before his junior year, whereas most kids start camping in 8th grade to build a following. He went to both Nike Football Training Camp/Elite 11 stops in Texas, at TCU in Fort Worth and Univ. of Houston. Both of these camps had the biggest names in the state and some out of state, and Alec took the top honor of MVP at both camps. The area invitation for Elite 11 finals in San Diego actually went to a kid that Alec bested at TCU. I was at both of these camps and I can honestly say that he looked like a college kid playing with high schoolers. I also know people that were at the June workout Alec had with Alabama coaches, and they most definately tested all aspects of his ability. He threw privately for about 45 minutes with coaches Groh and McElwain, then coach Saban came out to watch. In that time they tested different drops and accuracy to different route points, with power and touch. After that was over they tested strength and stamina by having him throw for distance from his knees. Alec measured at 53.5 yards, which coaches said was a new camp record that had been standing for a couple of years at 51 yards. Alec has a very strong arm, but it's hard to tell from the video because his style is smooth and effortless. I can tell you that the Alabama coaches had difficulty handling some of his hard out routes. While here he measured 6'4", 230lbs and ran a 4.7-40 yard dash. Some other great tidbits are that Alec is a highly competitive natural athlete that just turned 17 about 2 weeks ago, so he is still developing. He is also an excellent student, of good character and no drama. Alec is an excellent addition to the Alabama family and I think everyone will see they gained when they thought they lost on QB's." read more: http://www.tidefans.com/forums/showthread.php?t=141522

MGB: Former Alabama QB headed to Denton, according to source http://meangreenblog.dentonrc.com/2015/12/breaking-news-source-alabama-qb-alec-morris-is-transferring-to-unt.html/