Chad Morris is returning to his old stomping grounds in the Texas high school football scene as Allen High School has announced the former Arkansas and SMU coach as the team's new head coach. Morris returns to the high school level following a decade in college football as both an assistant and head coach.
Morris, most recently Auburn's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in 2020, coached the Razorbacks in 2018 and 2019, and SMU from 2015 to 2017.
"I am honored to join Allen ISD and the Allen Eagles football program," Morris said in a statement. "Allen High School is known throughout the state and nation for having a storied tradition of excellence in everything it does, and the football team is certainly included in that discussion. My roots run deep in Texas high school football, and I'm excited for the opportunity to get back to coaching young student-athletes and making an impression on their lives. As a coach, I'll expect our students to work hard, but I want them to know that I care about their overall development as leaders both on and off the field. It's my goal to establish a culture that can impact our student-athletes in a positive way, and I believe that will allow us to compete for championships on a consistent basis."
Before making the jump to the Division I FBS ranks in 2010, Morris had a long and successful career at the high school level in the Lone Star State, with stops at Stephenville and Lake Travis, among others. Amassing a career 169–38 record, Morris led Lake Travis to consecutive state titles in 2008 and 2009. The Cavaliers' quarterback at the time was Garrett Gilbert, who was the Gatorade Football Player of the Year and ended up signing with Texas. Gilbert later transferred to SMU under coach June Jones.
After a brief stint at Tulsa, Morris became Dabo Swinney's offensive coordinator at Clemson for three seasons (2011 to 2014) before being hired at SMU. In three years, he turned the Mustangs program around and got them to a bowl game before taking over at Arkansas. Morris' time with the Razorbacks was abysmal, however, with just four wins and zero SEC victories in two years.
This is actually a great landing spot for Morris. Despite his recent collegiate struggles, he still has a sterling reputation among Texas high school football coaches and Allen is a powerhouse program with multiple state championships to its name. It's produced a number of college and NFL stars, too, most notably Kyler Murray. Its home stadium, Eagle Stadium, made headlines nearly a decade ago when it opened after being built with a price tag of nearly $60 million.
