The puzzling part is why Morriss would go from making over $1 million per year as he did the last five years after parlaying his 2002 season at UK into a lucrative deal at Baylor to coaching a high school team.
No one but Morriss can really answer that. However, he does have a 100-acre farm outside Perryville that he has indicated for years would eventually be his retirement location. More importantly, Morriss is not one to worry about what other people think.
Remember, this is the man who often rode his motorcycle to work, who often slipped away to do chores by himself on that Perryville farm when he was the head coach at Kentucky.
If he thinks going from being a head college coach to a head high school coach is a transition he can enjoy, then this is a move he could definitely make. Besides, financially Morriss is fine since he still had one year remaining on a contract that paid him about $1.2 million annually when he was fired at Baylor.
Even though Morriss did not have a winning season at Baylor, his accomplishments were appreciated - especially since many wonder if any coach can ever win at Baylor.
"I want to publicly express my appreciation to coach Morriss for his contributions to the Baylor football program over the past five years. The football program is on a more solid foundation than it was when he arrived at Baylor," Baylor athletics director Ian McCaw said on Nov. 18 when Morriss was released.
A win either way for Boyle
Even if Morriss does not take the job, this is still a win for the Boyle football program. Having a former Division I coach interview for the job should show other coaching candidates that Boyle is still a viable high school program and should also help generate even more excitement among the returning players.
If Morriss says no, maybe other high school coaches who weren't interested will decide to take a harder look at the Boyle vacancy. Maybe a coach that was not originally interested in the job will now decide to apply.
The one negative scenario could be that Morriss still has numerous ties to the college and professional ranks.
He was a Pro Bowl center and played in the NFL from 1973-87. He's been an offensive line coach with the New England Patriots and Arizona Cardinals, and he has experience in the Canadian Football League and the Professional Spring Football League. Sources indicate at least one NFL team has talked to Morriss this week about a possible job.
He's also got strong ties to Texas since he is a Texas native. At least two major colleges in Texas have talked to him about offensive line openings this week.
Stability key in high school
Stability is the key to most successful high school programs. If Morriss took this job and left in a year, that would make Boyle have to go through the whole coaching search again.
Even worse, though, would be for Morriss to take the job and then get offered a high-profile NFL or Division I job in the next month or two and decide to take it. That would leave the program in turmoil, much like the girls basketball program found itself in when first-year coach Roger Newton pulled out a few days before the season started to take another job.
However, that's a gamble Boyle officials apparently are willing to take to land the biggest name possible for their program.
So will Morriss take the job?
My brain still says no, but so many other people are convinced he will that I now think it is possible. Boyle is obviously going to roll out its best treatment for him today, including an attractive financial offer, and don't discount his love for this area when it is time to make a final decision.
But even if he says no, Boyle officials had nothing to lose by making this offer, and if he says yes, the Rebels will certainly be adding even more credibility to their program.
