Search the Community

Eric Morris was officially named as the 20th head coach of UNT football on December 13, 2023. That is 29 weeks or two hundred days ago. He has yet to coach a game but that will change in a couple of months. And yet there has still been a fair amount of analysis on how Morris has fared in terms of his short tenure, with a primary focus on recruiting. While many UNT football recruiting fan heads have been spinning with the advent of NIL and the Portal, Morris has put together a solid recruiting team that has had its share of success along with a normal amount of disappointment that was to be expected this early. The real tell on how good a recruiting class can be occurs years after the class is finalized. The recruiting databases, and school offers are typically the only data points we have. The recruiting services have never invested a lot of resources into analyzing borderline 3-star recruits and so you could argue that offer lists may be even more important. One aspect that could differentiate Morris from his predecessor in Seth Littrell could be how many of these classes and players inside these classes stick and stay with the program or leave, commonly referred to in the business world as attrition. Under Littrell, it was pretty bad. Just eyeing 2022, UNT showed twelve signees and nine transfers for a total of twenty-one. Of that total, six have already headed to the exits or 30 percent. Not to mention existing players who also have exited the portal, like Jyaire Shorter and Larry Nixon That 30% seems like a lot, but in this era of portal and NIL it will become a lot more commonplace. If Morris can keep that attrition down and lower the number of players entering the portal due to NIL, it could make a big difference for the program, but UNT will need to ramp up NIL funds to aid him in that regard. GMG

DENTON, Texas – North Texas has finalized the first batch of football coaching and support staff hires, head coach Eric Morris announced Thursday. Joining Morris’ first UNT staff are Sean Brophy (Quarterbacks), Patrick Cobbs (Running backs), Chris Gilbert (Assistant Head Coach/Tight Ends), Rolando Surita (Chief of Staff/Assistant AD) and Drew Svoboda (Associate Head Coach/Special Teams Coordinator). More staffing hires will be announced soon. Brophy comes to Denton following four seasons coaching and playing under Morris at Washington State and Incarnate Word. He was a graduate assistant at Wazzu in 2022. He played quarterback at UIW from 2017-19. He was instrumental in the development of UIW and Washington State standout quarterback Cameron Ward while working directly under Morris at both institutions. A UNT Hall of Famer, Cobbs returns in 2023 for his fifth season as running backs coach. Over the last three years, North Texas running backs have finished in the Top 26 nationally in rushing including 3,035 yards in 2021 – the second most in program history. Gilbert has a long history in Dallas-Fort Worth and joins the UNT staff following two seasons as Director of High School relations at Texas. The South Oak Cliff graduate served as head coach at his alma mater in addition to a stint at Terrell and a highly successful 10-year run leading the program at Lancaster. Surita is a longtime, trusted ally of Morris after serving on his staff for four seasons at UIW (2018-21) and last season at Washington State. He held the title of Chief of Staff at UIW in 2021 before taking a scouting role at Wazzu for 2022. A native of Houston, he earned degrees from both UTSA and UIW, and has extensive experience in both operations and player personnel. Svoboda recently completed his second season on Nick Saban’s staff at Alabama following stints at both Memphis and Rice where he led special teams units for both programs. At Alabama, he was special teams coordinator and tight ends coach in 2021 when the Crimson Tide produced one of the top units in the country. He transitioned to the role of Senior Special Assistant to the Head Coach in 2022. Prior to moving on to the college ranks, Svoboda served as the Head Coach and Athletic Director at Klein Collins High School located in the Greater Houston area for 10 seasons. There he led the Tigers to five district crowns along with three undefeated regular seasons and trips to the state playoffs in eight of 10 seasons.

UNT Football: Eric Morris Hired as 20th Head Football Coach DENTON, Texas – Eric Morris has been hired as the 20th head coach in North Texas history, Vice President and Director of Athletics Jared Mosley announced Tuesday. “We are truly excited to welcome Coach Eric Morris and his family to North Texas,” Mosley said. “From early in our process Eric was able to clearly articulate his vision for UNT and what we can do in the short term to build momentum as we transition to the American Athletic Conference. “Among a deep and talented pool of candidates Eric distinguished himself with his great energy and strong track record as a championship head coach and a proven developer of talent. As a Texas native, he has deep relationships across the state, and he understands the importance of connecting with campus and the local community.” A record-setting offensive play-caller with extensive experience in the state of Texas, Morris comes to Denton following one season as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Washington State. He previously served as head coach at Incarnate Word in San Antonio for four seasons from 2018-21. “I am incredibly honored to be the head football coach at North Texas,” Morris said. “I am humbled and grateful for the opportunity given to me by Jared Mosley and President Smatresk to lead UNT Football into a new era in The American. As a native Texan, I understand the pride and standard of Mean Green football and I am humbled to be able to lead this storied program. My wife, Maggie, and our boys are so excited to return home. We can’t wait to meet the team and get to work.” In his first season with Washington State, the 37-year-old Morris has engineered an offense that ranks first in the Pac 12 and 10th nationally in redzone efficiency, scoring 91.5 percent of its trips inside the 20. The Cougars’ 52 points at Stanford were the most scored in a conference game since 2019, and the most in a road conference game since 2018. Under his guidance, quarterback Cameron Ward, who followed Morris from UIW, passed for 23 touchdowns (6th, Pac-12; 29th, FBS) and completed 298 passes (2nd, Pac-12; 10th, FBS). Ward posted five games with at least one rushing and one passing touchdown. Ward finished the regular season with 3,094 passing yards and 23 touchdowns to go with 285 rushing yards and five scores. He completed 64.1 percent of his passes. The Cougars also displayed a rejuvenated ground game, as Jaylen Jenkins became the first WSU freshman with 100 or more rushing yards in a game since 2005 with 130 against USC. Nakia Watson was the first rusher with consecutive 100-yards games following 166 at Stanford and 116 in a win over Arizona State. In his UIW tenure, Morris was twice named the Southland Conference Coach of the Year (2018, 2021). He led the Cardinals to two conference titles (2018, 2021), twice reached the FCS playoffs, and left UIW as the program record holder for victories with 24. During his time in San Antonio, Morris posted a 24-18 record and orchestrated an offense that finished in the top 10 nationally for total offense in three of his four seasons, including leading the nation in 2020-21 at 552.3 yards per game. His teams finished in the top five in scoring both of his final two seasons, third in 2020-21 (42.0 ppg) and fifth in 2021 at 39.5 ppg. In 2021, Morris guided the Cardinals to the Southland Conference title, reached the NCAA FCS Second Round, and finished with a 10-3 record, the winningest record in program history. Morris mentored longtime pupil Ward, who finished the season garnering Stats Perform FCS All-America Second Team honors as well as being named to the Hero Sports 2021 Sophomore All-American Team. Ward also received Southland Conference Offensive Player of the Year honors after breaking UIW program records for most career passing touchdowns and career passing yards, Ward was also a finalist for the Walter Payton Award. Morris also oversaw the development of wide receiver Taylor Grimes, who earned multiple All-American honors in 2021 and was named Southland Conference Newcomer of the Year after setting single-season records for receiving yards (1,145) and touchdown receptions (15). Morris guided the Cardinals to one of the best turnarounds in the FCS, being named the 2018 American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Regional Coach of the Year, the 2018 Southland Conference Coach of the Year, and an Eddie Robinson Award finalist. That season he guided UIW to a 6-4 regular season record, a conference championship and the program’s first FCS Playoff appearance in his first season. Prior to Incarnate Word, Morris spent five seasons (2013-17) as the offensive coordinator at his alma mater, Texas Tech. During that time, Morris helped the Red Raiders to three bowl games and guided one of the top offenses in the nation. From 2013-17, Texas Tech's offense scored over 30 points per game all five seasons, and all five years was ranked among the top 16 teams in total offense, including leading the nation in 2016 at 564.4 yards per game. The Tech offense was highlighted by quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who Morris recruited and coached in Lubbock. Morris, a native of Shallowater, Texas, returned to his roots in West Texas after spending the 2012 season as the inside receivers coach for former Tech head coach Mike Leach at Washington State. Prior to Pullman, Morris spent two years at the University of Houston, first as an offensive graduate assistant in 2010 and then as the offensive quality control assistant in 2011. Before joining the coaching profession, Morris played in the Canadian Football League in 2009. Morris was a versatile, all-round player during his four seasons as a Red Raider wide receiver (2005-08). He was an All-Big 12 punt returner as a senior and was also a member of the 2007 Academic All-Big 12 first team. Morris arrived at Tech following a stellar prep career at Shallowater High School where he was named the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal All-South Plains Super Team Offensive Player of the Year as a senior in 2003. Morris received his bachelor’s degree in communications studies from Texas Tech in 2008. He and his wife, Maggie, are parents to two sons, Nicholas and George. --GMG--

Join Evan, Harry and TheRealJD as they discuss newly hired UNT head football coach Eric Morris. The boys give their initial thoughts on the hire and look at the hiring process involving Morris as well as that of newly hired UNT Athletic Director Jared Mosley. They close out by discussing how both will look to build on UNT's athletic success as the program joins the American Athletic Conference (AAC) next year. Direct audio link: https://traffic.libsyn.com/gomeangreen/Morris_hired_mixdown.mp3

The move is just another hit to a Washington State team that is already looking to fill plenty of gaps heading into Saturday’s bowl game. Earlier this month, the team lost their defensive coordinator when Brian Ward took the same position with Arizona State, lost their star linebacker when Daiyan Henley decided to opt out of the bowl game to focus on the draft, and could be without more than a dozen more players who have all entered their names into the transfer portal. We’ll have to wait and see who WSU will have available, both on the field and on the sideline, when the LA Bowl kicks off on Saturday afternoon. In the meantime, Morris is taking advantage of his opportunity and leading the Mean Green into their new era. At the same time, the Leach disciple is helping to make sure that the Pirate’s coaching tree flourishes for years to come. North Texas names Washington State OC Eric Morris as new coach North Texas has hired Washington State offensive coordinator Eric Morris as the team's new head coach, the school announced Tuesday. Eric Morris Hired as 20th Head Football Coach - University of North Texas Athletics Eric Morris has been hired as the 20th head coach in North Texas history, Vice President and Director of Athletics Jared Mosley announced Tuesday. Eric Morris, Washington State's offensive coordinator and a Mike Leach pupil, accepts head coaching position at North Texas | The Spokesman-Review Eric Morris, Washington State’s offensive coordinator and a Mike Leach disciple who played for the late coach at Texas Tech, accepted a position to become the head coach at North Texas on Tuesday morning. LINK: https://www.cougcenter.com/2022/12/14/23508532/eric-morris-north-texas-head-coach-washington-state-cougars-wsu-offensive-coordinator

12. North TexasWhy it's desirable: It's a work study program for a bigger head coaching job. That's not a magnet for an established head coach, but North Texas hasn't hired one of those since Hayden Fry in 1973. Its eight head coaches since Fry have either come from assistant coaching roles (six times) or from a high school (twice). For an assistant looking to learn how the big chair feels, it's a starting point. Why it's not: There is no winning history to speak of, and the competition for in-state talent is immense. There are 12 schools in Texas in the FBS alone, including three others in Conference-USA. Perfect fit: Texas Tech offensive coordinator Eric Morris. read more: http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000567353/article/ranking-the-13-college-headcoaching-vacancies Morris Bio