Oklahoma State to Hire North Texas' Eric Morris as Next Head Coach
In this story:
Oklahoma State has its next head coach.
On Tuesday, ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported that OSU is hiring North Texas coach Eric Morris to be the team’s next head coach. After firing Mike Gundy earlier this season, the Cowboys have landed on their next leader.
According to Thamel’s report, Morris will continue coaching North Texas for the rest of the season, with potential conference championship and playoff games in sight. Currently, the Mean Green are 10-1 and hold the No. 21 spot in the latest College Football Playoff rankings, making them a clear contender for the Group of Five spot in the 12-team field.
While Morris is in only his third season as a head coach at the FBS level, he has led a nice turnaround for North Texas since arriving in 2023. Along with helping North Texas go from 5-7 in his first year to a playoff contender in year three, he also spent four seasons as the head coach at Incarnate Word, leading that program to the FCS playoffs multiple times.
Known as an offensive-minded coach, Morris also has some Big 12 ties, playing for Texas Tech as a wide receiver from 2004-08 and coaching as an assistant and offensive coordinator for the Red Raiders from 2013-17.
After firing Gundy just three games into the season, it was clear that Chad Weiberg and the Cowboys were looking toward the future. While OSU only has one win this season, it can now move forward with Morris and get ready for whatever the future might hold.
Although the Cowboys had struggled over the past two seasons, Morris will have some big shoes to fill as he looks to become a successful successor to Gundy’s throne. With 18 straight bowl appearances and winning seasons from 2006-23, Morris will be held to a high standard in Stillwater, but won’t necessarily be expected to find that type of success immediately upon arrival.
OSU still has one more game this season, with interim coach Doug Meacham set to lead the Cowboys against Iowa State on Saturday. While the energy in Boone Pickens Stadium has been up and down all season, there should certainly be a buzz in the air now that OSU has its man.
Considering Weiberg’s success in other head coaching searches, the Cowboys should have plenty of confidence that Morris is the right person for the job. Only time will tell how this move works out, but the Cowboys have Gundy’s replacement.
Ivan is a sports media student at Oklahoma State University. He has covered OSU athletics since 2022 and also covers the OKC Thunder for Inside The Thunder and Thunderous Intentions.