Staff Directory
- Title:
- Offensive Coordinator
No stranger to Texas Tech or its high-powered offense, Eric Morris enters his fifth season on head coach Kliff Kingsbury’s staff and his fourth in the role of offensive coordinator.
Morris has helped produce one of the most high-scoring offenses in the country the past four seasons as Tech has annually ranked among the top 10 units in total offense and among the top five for passing offense. The Red Raiders led the nation in 2016 with 566.6 yards of total offense per game as well as 463 passing yards per game.
Tech has averaged at least 40 points per game in each of the past two seasons and over 30 points during Morris’ entire tenure on staff. The Red Raiders snapped the single-season school record with 45.1 points per game in 2015 and then averaged 43.7 points per game in 2016.
The Red Raiders’ success offensively in 2015 pushed Tech to an appearance in the AdvoCare V100 Texas Bowl, its second postseason trip during Morris’ tenure. Tech closed the 2015 campaign ranked second nationally in total offense, scoring offense as well as passing offense.
Most impressively, the Red Raiders were consistent throughout the season as Tech totaled at least 25 points in all 13 games. Tech was one of just two schools nationally and the only team in a power-five conference to score 25 or more points in every game of the 2015 season.
Morris, a 2008 graduate of Texas Tech, helped Tech boast a balanced attack that featured a 4,000-yard passer in Patrick Mahomes II, a 1,000-yard rusher in DeAndre Washington and a 1,000-yard receiver in Jakeem Grant. It marked the first time in program history where three different Red Raiders reached each of those three marks during the same season.
Under Morris’ guidance, Grant ended his career as the all-time leading receiver in Tech history. Grant, an All-America honoree by several publications, totaled 3,164 receiving yards over his four seasons, breaking the previous school record that was set by two-time Biletnikoff Award winner Michael Crabtree.
In addition, Grant also snapped the Tech single-season record for all-purpose yards after totaling 2,353 on the year, including 1,268 yards through the air. He also returned a pair of kickoffs for a touchdown, breaking the Tech career record in the process.
Following Grant’s departure, Morris tutored Jonathan Giles and Keke Coutee – both true sophomores at the time – to breakout seasons in 2016. Giles earned All-Big 12 second team honors after recording 1,158 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns, both of which that ranked in the top 10 in Tech single-season history. Coutee, meanwhile, finished second on the team with 890 receiving yards and seven touchdowns while fellow inside receiver Cameron Batson hauled in 60 passes – second-most on the team – for 644 yards and eight touchdowns.
In Morris’ first season as the lone offensive coordinator, Tech finished with a No. 10 national ranking in total offense as the Red Raiders averaged 504.1 yards-per-game in 2014. Additionally, the passing offense ended the season with a No. 5 national ranking as Tech averaged 351.1 yards per game through the air.
The Red Raiders displayed a balanced attack that season thanks in part to Washington’s impact on the ground game. The then-junior rushed for 1,103 yards over 12 games, marking the first time a Red Raider running back had reached the 1,000-yard mark since Ricky Williams in 1998.
Morris shared offensive coordinator responsibilities during his debut season in 2013 where the Red Raiders displayed the nation’s second-ranked passing attack (392.8 yards per game) and the eighth-best unit for total offense (511.0 yards-per-game). The solid season offensively pushed Tech to an appearance in the National University Holiday Bowl where the Red Raiders pulled off a stunning 37-23 victory over No. 16 Arizona State.
Jace Amaro closed 2013 campaign with one of the best seasons by a receiver in program history. Amaro, a second round selection in the 2013 NFL Draft by the New York Jets, set an NCAA FBS record for most receiving yards (1,352) in a single season by a tight end and was named an NCAA Consensus All-American.
Morris, a native of nearby Shallowater, 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. In his only season, the Washington State receiving corps hauled in 3,965 yards as well as 23 touchdowns.
Prior to heading to Pullman, Morris spent two years on Kevin Sumlin’s staff at the University of Houston, first as an offensive graduate assistant in 2010 and then as the offensive quality control assistant in 2011. Kingsbury was on the same staff as Morris at the time as he served as quarterbacks coach in 2010 before being promoted to co-offensive coordinator a year later.
Morris and Kingsbury helped produce one of the nation’s top offenses in 2011 as the Cougars led the country in passing (443.8 yards per game), total offense (599.0 yards per game) and scoring average (50.8 points per game). Houston concluded the season with a 12-1 record which included a win over Penn State in the TicketCity Bowl.
Before joining the coaching profession, Morris played in the Canadian Football League. He joined the Saskatchewan Roughriders out of training camp in 2009 while battling a knee injury.
Morris was a versatile, all-round player during his four seasons as a Red Raider wide receiver (2005-08). Morris caught 184 passes for 1,965 yards and 19 touchdowns over his four seasons, the majority of which came during his final two years. He concluded his career as one of four players in NCAA FBS history to be part of multiple receiving trios where each player recorded at least 60 receptions in a season.
Morris was also instrumental as Tech’s primary punt returner the final two seasons where he averaged just over 10 yards a return. He was named to the All-Big 12 second team as a punt returner by the Fort Worth Star Telegram 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. He finished with 926 rushing yards that season and 24 touchdowns while throwing for another 1,926 yards and 22 touchdowns.
Morris received his bachelor’s degree in communications studies from Texas Tech in 2008. He and his wife, Maggie, reside in Lubbock with their son, Nicholas Jack.
COACHING HISTORY
2015-present: Texas Tech Offensive Coordinator (inside receivers)
2014: Texas Tech Offensive Coordinator (wide receivers)
2013: Texas Tech Co-Offensive Coordinator (inside receivers)
2012: Washington State Assistant Coach (inside receivers)
2011: Houston Graduate Assistant (wide receivers)
2010: Houston Quality Control Assistant
Red Raiders in the NFL. #WRU pic.twitter.com/3JrGaYJ0Dd
— Eric Morris (@TTUCoachMorris) February 23, 2017
