Stanford offer made MJ Morris' year
MJ Morris will remember for a long time the moment that Stanford offensive coordinator Tavita Pritchard told him he had an offer. It was just after a Pace Academy practice Saturday when Morris called Pritchard.
“I had the biggest smile on my face," he said. "I think that is one of the happiest moments of my life. I was ecstatic the whole day. That actually made my year.”
Morris is one of the best quarterbacks in the country for his class and is a playmaker with a strong right arm and legs. Last year he threw for 2,186 yards and 20 touchdowns while adding 379 yards and eight more scores on the ground.
He did all of that while playing through the constant pain of a hip impingement that was especially problematic when he was dropping back and needed to open up to make a throw. In other words for a quarterback, unless it was a designed run he was going to feel that injury.
“It definitely hurt, but … if I showed that I was hurt then the rest of the team wouldn’t play how they needed to. I would tell myself that this is going to hurt and play through it. There were some plays it would get to my head but when I thought about it then it affected my game.”
He reports offers from Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, LSU, Michigan, Penn State and many others. Before the pandemic hit he visited Auburn, Georgia, Tennessee and Alabama.
Academics are a major focus in life for the son of Kim and Eddie Morris. MJ says his parents always stressed that success in the classroom is more important than if he won on Friday. (And he has won a lot more than he's lost on Fridays with a combined 21-5 record at Carrollton the past two seasons.)
It's the same story of academics first for all of the Morris' kids. MJ's sister, Morgan, is at Emory College and his brother, CJ, is in the seventh grade.
“It really means a lot when a school like that offers you because it makes you feel good to know you’re doing well in the classroom and on the football field," MJ said. "I always hear great things about Stanford. I could definitely see myself playing there one day.”
Morris did a virtual visit in late July and has been in contact with Stanford for almost two months now. The presentation during the visit about academic opportunities at Stanford stood out to Morris and his parents. Morris also liked the family vibe he got from the players and coaches.
He calls Pritchard once or twice a week and talked for about 10 minutes with head coach David Shaw during the visit. Morris feels he has a great connection with Pritchard and he expects it to only get better.
“He’s also built a great relationship with my parents. Sometimes when we’re on the phone with a Zoom call, we’ll talk for maybe 30 minutes about Stanford and our families.
“I definitely want him to be real with me" Morris said about what he wants to hear from coaches. "Tell me what I’m actually going to get when I’m at the university. Stanford has done a great job with that. When I was on the virtual tour I found out that my freshman year my roommate is not on the football team. I think that’s very cool."
Morris transferred to Pace Academy for his junior year. The private school in Atlanta is a regular destination for Stanford coaches in multiple sports.
Morris and his teammates are scheduled to open their season Friday at home versus the Holy Innocents' Episcopal School.