Grading the hire: Oklahoma State picks QB guru Eric Morris as new coach
The second hiring domino of this year's coaching carousel fell Tuesday with Oklahoma State hiring Eric Morris as its next football coach.
Morris has North Texas (10-1) in the thick of the College Football Playoff chase with a spot in the American Conference Championship game on the line this weekend against Temple.
College football coaching carousel: Grading each new hire, how they fit
Here's how the hire grades out:
Blake Toppmeyer: A-
Will it work? Don’t know.Do I like the hire? Absolutely.
Oklahoma State is catching Morris, 40, on his way up. After two losing seasons to start his North Texas tenure, he’s enjoyed a breakout campaign in Year 3, steering the Mean Green into playoff contention. If UNT’s star freshman quarterback Drew Mestemaker follows Morris to Stillwater, all the better. Mestemaker played safety as a high school senior. Paired with Morris, he’s become the American Conference’s best quarterback. Impressive.
Morris suits Oklahoma State’s needs. He’s from Texas, a crucial state for Cowboys recruiting, and he’s spent most of his coaching career within the state. He’ll bring a track record for quarterback development within the Air Raid offense. That system makes a lot of sense for the Cowboys. Plenty of high schools in Texas run the Air Raid, inspired by former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach. Morris played for Leach at Texas Tech and worked under him at Washington State.
Just consider the quarterbacks Morris has helped develop. Baker Mayfield . Patrick Mahomes . Cam Ward .
Is it any wonder I like this hire for a program that needs a revolution of offense?
Matt Hayes: A
Yet another Power conference coach from the Mike Leach coaching tree. Better yet, a former player for Leach at Texas Tech, where Morris was a tough, undersized wide receiver they called Elf.
it was only a matter of time before he landed a Power conference job. But this one, with the infrastructure in place and the expectation of an elite pass game from all those successful Mike Gundy seasons, seems like the perfect fit.
He's a native Texan, and has connections throughout the deep and talent-rich Texas high schools. He'll be the surge of different ideas Oklahoma State has needed.
Make no mistake, this will be all about the quarterback. The overriding question: can Morris convince prolific freshman QB Drew Mestemaker to come to Oklahoma State ― over any number of Power conference offers he's bound to receive.
When the Cowboys get it going, there are few better places for a football game than Stillwater.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: OK State football coach Eric Morris hired from North Texas grades
