Chad Morris hired at USF:
The Chad Morris name is a tarnished one amongst the Arkansas fanbase. The former Arkansas head coach led the Razorbacks to a disastrous 4-18 record before getting canned in 2019. After leaving Fayetteville, Morris spent one season as the OC for Auburn going back to the high school ranks. Then Morris began coaching at Allen High School (TX) during the 2021 season. Morris went 11-3 before quitting the job in May. Now, Morris is back in the college game. University of Southern Florida (USF) named Morris its senior offensive analyst on Monday.
Jeff Scott, USF’s head coach, worked with Morris while at Clemson in the early 2010s. During that time period, Clemson boasted tremendous offenses. Scott worked as the wide receiver coach while Morris was the OC. Scott coached players like Sammy Watkins, DeAndre Hopkins, and Martavis Bryant, who all made serious impact in the NFL.
In 2014, Morris left to take the head coaching job at SMU, and Scott became co-OC at Clemson with current Virginia head coach Tony Elliot. In 2020, Scott took the head coaching job at USF.
But as the head coach at USF, Scott has ran into early troubles. Coming off back-to-back years with a winning percentage below 17%, Scott made some major changes to the offensive side of the ball. South Florida ranked 102nd in total offense. Then in the offseason OC Charlie Weis Jr. was poached by Ole Miss. After Weis Jr. departed, Scott hired Travis Trickett as his OC. Previously, Trickett coached inside receivers and tight ends at West Virginia. The hires of Trickett and Morris indicates that USF wants to play more up-tempo in 2022 and beyond.
Welcome to the Bay, Coach Morris!
📰https://t.co/WQco56zvP5#HornsUp 🤘 | #US2F
— USF Football (@USFFootball) July 18, 2022
Morris’ future:
While Morris’ name might be tarnished in the P5, it seems unlikely that an analyst role will be the final stop in the college ranks for Morris. He’s been a HC and OC in college for over 10 years. Perhaps some non-P5 schools will overlook his time at Arkansas and see the high-powered offenses he built at Clemson.