Was Morris the Wrong Hire? (Spoiler.. We Don't Know)

TheReal_jayD · September 12, 2023

The start of the Eric Morris era at North Texas has undeniably been rocky, with two tough losses in the first two games. However, it is important not to jump to conclusions and call for a change in leadership just yet. It is easy to compare every mistake made by Morris to those made by past coaches at North Texas, but it is essential to consider the root of the current problems.

The issues could stem from a variety of factors, such as personnel not fitting the scheme or players not fully buying into the new system. It is too early to determine the exact source of the problem. It is worth noting that Morris has previously built a successful program at UIW, taking them from being a bottom-dwelling FCS team to a national power. However, this transformation did not happen overnight.

While some may argue that the North Texas team was not a complete rebuild, it was also not a finished product. This roster struggled to defeat teams ranked above them. It is essential to remember that other American Conference coaches have faced initial struggles but eventually turned things around. Matt Rhule, for example, won only two games in his first year at Temple but had his team in the conference championship game by year three and won it in year four. Similarly, Justin Fuente won four and three games in his first two years at Memphis before leading them to an AAC championship in his third year. Another fan favorite, Willie Fritz, won four and five games in his first two years at Tulane, but it took until year seven for them to become conference champions. Today, with the transfer portal and NIL opportunities, a team can be rebuilt relatively quickly.

The point being made is that it is unfair to judge Morris based on immediate results. It is understandable that he was not able to completely overhaul the team like Deion Sanders or GJ Kinne did, as he did not take over a one-win team. However, this does not mean that the roster was perfect or complete. North Texas also lost some key contributors, and it is possible that the current roster does not perfectly align with Morris's preferred scheme. Therefore, it is crucial to give Morris time to bring in players who fit his system and identify the right players on the current roster who can excel within it.

It is important to take a step back and let this process play out. Morris should be given a full season and an offseason to build the roster and implement his strategies. It is unfair to judge him without affording him that opportunity. It should be noted that Morris faced challenges by not being able to participate in the early signing period, which did not do him any favors. This is not to say that Morris is the next Nick Saban or that North Texas will win a conference championship next season. The message is simply to give Morris a chance and refrain from rushing to judgment. Let's put the pitchforks down and allow the situation to develop.

meangreenbob · September 12, 2023

13 minutes ago, TheReal_jayD said:

The start of the Eric Morris era at North Texas has undeniably been rocky, with two tough losses in the first two games. However, it is important not to jump to conclusions and call for a change in leadership just yet. It is easy to compare every mistake made by Morris to those made by past coaches at North Texas, but it is essential to consider the root of the current problems.

The issues could stem from a variety of factors, such as personnel not fitting the scheme or players not fully buying into the new system. It is too early to determine the exact source of the problem. It is worth noting that Morris has previously built a successful program at UIW, taking them from being a bottom-dwelling FCS team to a national power. However, this transformation did not happen overnight.

While some may argue that the North Texas team was not a complete rebuild, it was also not a finished product. This roster struggled to defeat teams ranked above them. It is essential to remember that other American Conference coaches have faced initial struggles but eventually turned things around. Matt Rhule, for example, won only two games in his first year at Temple but had his team in the conference championship game by year three and won it in year four. Similarly, Justin Fuente won four and three games in his first two years at Memphis before leading them to an AAC championship in his third year. Another fan favorite, Willie Fritz, won four and five games in his first two years at Tulane, but it took until year seven for them to become conference champions. Today, with the transfer portal and NIL opportunities, a team can be rebuilt relatively quickly.

The point being made is that it is unfair to judge Morris based on immediate results. It is understandable that he was not able to completely overhaul the team like Deion Sanders or GJ Kinne did, as he did not take over a one-win team. However, this does not mean that the roster was perfect or complete. North Texas also lost some key contributors, and it is possible that the current roster does not perfectly align with Morris's preferred scheme. Therefore, it is crucial to give Morris time to bring in players who fit his system and identify the right players on the current roster who can excel within it.

It is important to take a step back and let this process play out. Morris should be given a full season and an offseason to build the roster and implement his strategies. It is unfair to judge him without affording him that opportunity. It should be noted that Morris faced challenges by not being able to participate in the early signing period, which did not do him any favors. This is not to say that Morris is the next Nick Saban or that North Texas will win a conference championship next season. The message is simply to give Morris a chance and refrain from rushing to judgment. Let's put the pitchforks down and allow the situation to develop.

WHY ARE WE ALWAYS STARTING OVER?

AND WHY DO WE ALWAYS ASSUME WE HAVE PLENTY OF TIME? WE DON’T. TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE.

Big Z · September 12, 2023

Put down the Green Koolaid

This isn't the FCS, this is the AAC!

Big Z · September 12, 2023

7 minutes ago, meangreenbob said:

WHY ARE WE ALWAYS STARTING OVER?

AND WHY DO WE ALWAYS ASSUME WE HAVE PLENTY OF TIME? WE DON’T. TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE.

Exactly!

Udomann · September 12, 2023

47 minutes ago, TheReal_jayD said:

The start of the Eric Morris era at North Texas has undeniably been rocky, with two tough losses in the first two games. However, it is important not to jump to conclusions and call for a change in leadership just yet. It is easy to compare every mistake made by Morris to those made by past coaches at North Texas, but it is essential to consider the root of the current problems.

The issues could stem from a variety of factors, such as personnel not fitting the scheme or players not fully buying into the new system. It is too early to determine the exact source of the problem. It is worth noting that Morris has previously built a successful program at UIW, taking them from being a bottom-dwelling FCS team to a national power. However, this transformation did not happen overnight.

While some may argue that the North Texas team was not a complete rebuild, it was also not a finished product. This roster struggled to defeat teams ranked above them. It is essential to remember that other American Conference coaches have faced initial struggles but eventually turned things around. Matt Rhule, for example, won only two games in his first year at Temple but had his team in the conference championship game by year three and won it in year four. Similarly, Justin Fuente won four and three games in his first two years at Memphis before leading them to an AAC championship in his third year. Another fan favorite, Willie Fritz, won four and five games in his first two years at Tulane, but it took until year seven for them to become conference champions. Today, with the transfer portal and NIL opportunities, a team can be rebuilt relatively quickly.

The point being made is that it is unfair to judge Morris based on immediate results. It is understandable that he was not able to completely overhaul the team like Deion Sanders or GJ Kinne did, as he did not take over a one-win team. However, this does not mean that the roster was perfect or complete. North Texas also lost some key contributors, and it is possible that the current roster does not perfectly align with Morris's preferred scheme. Therefore, it is crucial to give Morris time to bring in players who fit his system and identify the right players on the current roster who can excel within it.

It is important to take a step back and let this process play out. Morris should be given a full season and an offseason to build the roster and implement his strategies. It is unfair to judge him without affording him that opportunity. It should be noted that Morris faced challenges by not being able to participate in the early signing period, which did not do him any favors. This is not to say that Morris is the next Nick Saban or that North Texas will win a conference championship next season. The message is simply to give Morris a chance and refrain from rushing to judgment. Let's put the pitchforks down and allow the situation to develop.

Not going for it. Morris is essentially a CEO, and a very well paid one, to take over an organization and build on it. Any CEO would have already been run out of the company on his golden parachute if they took a reasonable organization and completely turned it unprofitable in 10 months.

We hired him to improve the program, and it's almost worse than ever. Bad decisions up front with the promise that maybe it will get better don't play anywhere else... and we customers shouldn't accept it. I don't care if he might be a good hire 3 years from now. This staff is bad now.

Edited September 12, 2023 by Udomann

MeanGreen22 · September 12, 2023

15 minutes ago, meangreenbob said:

WHY ARE WE ALWAYS STARTING OVER?

AND WHY DO WE ALWAYS ASSUME WE HAVE PLENTY OF TIME? WE DON’T. TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE.

It depends on your definition of “starting over”. Every program that changes leadership starts over in some way. Whether it’s a complete tear down or a reboot. Of course, we’d all love instant gratification but it doesn’t always work that way. Fritz wasn’t an immediate success, Traylor was. Both are great coaches that have their program in great spots but took different roads to get there.

meangreenbob · September 12, 2023

4 minutes ago, MeanGreen22 said:

It depends on your definition of “starting over”. Every program that changes leadership starts over in some way. Whether it’s a complete tear down or a reboot. Of course, we’d all love instant gratification but it doesn’t always work that way. Fritz wasn’t an immediate success, Traylor was. Both are great coaches that have their program in great spots but took different roads to get there.

We waited too long before we fired Littrell. It didn’t have to be like this.

meangreenbob · September 12, 2023

15 minutes ago, Udomann said:

Not going for it. Morris is essentially a CEO, and a very well paid one, to take over an organization and build on it. Any CEO would have already been run out of the company on his golden parachute if they took a reasonable organization and completely turned it unprofitable in 10 months.

We hired him to improve the program, and it's almost worse than ever. Bad decisions up front with the promise that maybe it will get better don't play anywhere else... and we customers shouldn't accept it. I don't care if he might be a good hire 3 years from now. This staff is bad now.

Yes it is. And we are in this position because the leadership at North Texas failed to do their due diligence.

And that’s probably because they have no clue what due diligence is.

Edited September 12, 2023 by meangreenbob

Jonnyeagle · September 12, 2023

13 minutes ago, meangreenbob said:

We waited too long before we fired Littrell. It didn’t have to be like this.

This I totally agree with.

TreeFiddy · September 12, 2023

For me, this has less to do about the losses and more about bringing a visibly unprepared and undisciplined team to the field to begin the season in all 3 phases of the game. That first game was ridiculous. We looked like a rec team.

If the coach is going to need 2-3 years to get his guys in here and get them used to his system, he was most definitely the wrong guy for the job because that is not what we were supposed to be doing. We were supposed to be hiring a guy that could come in and take the next step without requiring a rebuild. Isn't that the reason we hired another air raid guy?

Trying to sell a rebuild at this point is a non starter for me. If this is going to be a rebuild then Mosley should have some explaining to do.

Big Z · September 13, 2023

Lets get a count here

How many of you get tired of going to home openers and seeing our team get their butts kicked?

THOR · September 13, 2023

9 minutes ago, Big Z said:

Lets get a count here

How many of you get tired of going to home openers and seeing our team get their butts kicked?

littrell was hired in 16....since then, north texas has lost 3 home openers....cal, smu, smu....not sure what you are getting at here

PlummMeanGreen · September 13, 2023

Coach Eric Morris’ former employer, the Washington State Cougars are now a Top 25 ranked team as of this week. That all began on the recruiting trail for the Cougars.

UNT never had recruiting ties to Dallas SOC high school, but we do now.

•••If Eric Morris has to tweak his coaching staff he will, but even with a late start in recruiting I hear they still did fine with a few recruiting surprises.

•••Watching our team vs UTSA last year with the size discrepancies between their offensive line vs our defensive line I figured we’d have trouble in 2023 against some schools with almost prototypical NFL sized offensive linemen.

Tackling? The Myrtle Beach bowl game 3 years ago vs App State was the worst display of tackling I ever saw. Phil Bennett cleaned it up quite a bit the next 2 years.

Very anxious to see what happens in Ruston this Saturday evening.

GO MEAN GREEN!

Edited September 13, 2023 by PlummMeanGreen

Wag Tag · September 13, 2023

Wren screwed us with his timing which had a major impact on recruitment. I’m concerned about us getting all excited about HS players. Portal, portal! The day of the 3-4 year turnaround is over. If the D doesn’t improve then the DC should be let go at the end of the year.

GMG_Dallas · September 13, 2023

1 hour ago, TheReal_jayD said:

Matt Rhule, for example, won only two games in his first year at Temple but had his team in the conference championship game by year three and won it in year four. Similarly, Justin Fuente won four and three games in his first two years at Memphis before leading them to an AAC championship in his third year. Another fan favorite, Willie Fritz, won four and five games in his first two years at Tulane, but it took until year seven for them to become conference champions.

Justin Fuente won 4 games his first year at Memphis in 2012. Yes, however, Memphis won 2 games in 2011, 1 in 2010, and 2 in 2009. He took over a bad squad.

Willie Fritz won 4 his first year at Tulane in 2016. Again, Tulane won 3 games each of the previous two years. Somewhat immediate improvement and it was a bad program. He took over a program with 1 winning season since 2002 and has given them 4 seasons at .500 or better, a modern-day rarity for Tulane. His 2 win season is an outlier.

Matt Rhule is the only one of those three who had a worst record than the year prior to him taking over although. Temple won 4 the year before he took over and 2 his first year with some 4 losses of 3 points or less.

I don't think Morris' situation compares to the coaches you mentioned. Time well tell if Morris is the guy but there's no sugar coating the start of his era.

jtm0097 · September 13, 2023

Nice write up JD. I think the biggest frustration is that we literally played for a conference championship last season and almost won our bowl game against Boise State. I'm not in the fire Morris camp, but I'm certainly bummed about the last 2 games. I don't love the 3-3-5 with our current roster. We need to see improvement these next few weeks. If not, I suspect we gut the defense and rebuild it via the transfer portal and JUCO players.

herewego · September 13, 2023

Nah the next guy will get more time because of Morris. What's the spin if we go 0-12? Hope he's the answer because currently he looks like a program cancer.

Rudy · September 13, 2023

The fact that we already have to ask this question is a big indicator.

DentonLurker · September 13, 2023

It’s still funny that the mere suggestion that this program wasn’t really that close to great success is met with so much resistance from the same folks who didn’t care about that in conversations about Littrell. The conference championship game appearance didn’t matter...The bowl appearances didn’t matter… but now they’re some reflection of this program not being in bad shape???? You can’t have it both ways. Coaches will tell you that anytime there is a change at the top it’s a rebuild. New coaches, new schemes, new culture, new vocabulary, etc. The only exception would be if you promote a “coach in waiting” who keeps everything the same.

DentonLurker · September 13, 2023

1 minute ago, Rudy said:

The fact that we already have to ask this question is a big indicator.

No, it’s not. There are fans who question every decision every coach ever makes. There are fans in Tuscaloosa ready to run off Saban this week.

Udomann · September 13, 2023

1 minute ago, DentonLurker said:

No, it’s not. There are fans who question every decision every coach ever makes. There are fans in Tuscaloosa ready to run off Saban this week.

I'd rather be a fan that expects more than one who accepts poor. But honestly I'd settle for marginally better?

greenjoe · September 13, 2023

At this point, I’d settle for going into overtime.

TreeFiddy · September 13, 2023

7 minutes ago, DentonLurker said:

It’s still funny that the mere suggestion that this program wasn’t really that close to great success is met with so much resistance from the same folks who didn’t care about that in conversations about Littrell. The conference championship game appearance didn’t matter...The bowl appearances didn’t matter… but now they’re some reflection of this program not being in bad shape???? You can’t have it both ways. Coaches will tell you that anytime there is a change at the top it’s a rebuild. New coaches, new schemes, new culture, new vocabulary, etc. The only exception would be if you promote a “coach in waiting” who keeps everything the same.

Coaches will always tell you that because it is in their best interest to tell you that to CYA.

It may be time for Morris to open the first envelope.

DentonLurker · September 13, 2023

23 minutes ago, Udomann said:

I'd rather be a fan that expects more than one who accepts poor. But honestly I'd settle for marginally better?

I haven’t seen anyone accepting poor. I have seen people saying, “let’s give this staff more than two weeks.”

DeepGreen · September 13, 2023

1 hour ago, THOR said:

littrell was hired in 16....since then, north texas has lost 3 home openers....cal, smu, smu....not sure what you are getting at here

It’s O.K. to lose our home openers every season? Pretty low bar in my opinion.