Jamie Morris
No. 22, 24 | |||
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Position: | Running back | ||
Personal information | |||
Born: | Southern Pines, North Carolina, U.S. | June 6, 1965||
Career information | |||
College: | Michigan | ||
NFL draft: | 1988 / Round: 4 / Pick: 109 | ||
Career history | |||
Career highlights and awards | |||
NFL record
Michigan Wolverines records
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Career NFL statistics | |||
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Player stats at NFL.com |
James Walter Morris (born June 6, 1965) is an American former professional
Morris was a record-setting running back in
Early life
Morris is from
Morris is the younger brother of Joe Morris who set the all-time rushing record at Syracuse University and went on to play for the New York Giants. Jamie and Joe and two brothers and two sisters grew up in Ayer. Their father, Earl Morris, a former Green Beret master sergeant in Vietnam, was a postmaster in Groton, Massachusetts.[1]
College football at Michigan
Michigan's all-time leader in all-purpose yards
Morris played
In 1986, Morris suffered a knee injury in a game against
Morris also holds the record for the longest run in
Morris' Top 10 game performances at Michigan
Morris' Top 10 game performances for the Wolverines are as follows:[6]
Rank | Opponent | Date | Rushing Yds. | Recvg. Yds. | Kick Rtn. Yds. | All-Purp. Yds. | TDs | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Ohio State | 1986-11-22 | 210 | 22 | 70 | 302 | 2 | 26-24 |
2 | Alabama | 1988-01-02 | 234 | -4 | 0 | 230 | 3 | 28-24 |
3 | Indiana | 1985-10-26 | 179 | 24 | 26 | 229 | 2 | 42-15 |
4 | Wisconsin | 1987-10-03 | 182 | 25 | 0 | 207 | 3 | 49-0 |
5 | Oregon State | 1986-09-20 | 140 | 35 | 29 | 204 | 0 | 31-12 |
6 | Minnesota | 1987-11-07 | 149 | 5 | 42 | 196 | 1 | 30-20 |
7 | Nebraska | 1986-01-01 | 156 | 10 | 29 | 195 | 0 | 27-23 |
8 | Minnesota | 1986-11-15 | 78 | 64 | 51 | 193 | 0 | 17-20 |
9 | Indiana | 1987-10-24 | 152 | 12 | 27 | 191 | 0 | 10-14 |
10 | Long Beach St. |
1987-09-26 | 171 | 0 | 0 | 171 | 1 | 49-0 |
Relationship with Schembechler
Morris played at Michigan under head coach Bo Schembechler. When Morris first arrived at Michigan, Schembechler told Morris (who stood five feet, seven inches) he was too short to play at running back. Schembechler recalled: "I told Jamie when we recruited him he was too small to be a running back and we wanted him for running back kicks. I did, however, promise him the chance to try to be a running back for us. Good thing I did, isn't it?" [1] In his third game as a freshman, Schembechler put him in as the starting tailback, and he remained Michigan's starter at the position for four years.[1]
When asked years later about Morris' career at Michigan, Schembechler said: "Here's a kid who I thought would be a very fine kick-return specialist, and he ended up becoming the all-time leading ground-gainer in Michigan history. What do you know about that?"[7]
In a November 2007 interview with The Ann Arbor News, Morris recalled: "Once Coach Bo was chastising me, and (assistant coach Lloyd Carr) pointed out, 'Look at those younger players over there. He's not yelling at them, so he must think something about you.' And that held with me for a long time."[8]
Morris also spoke at the memorial service held at Michigan Stadium after Schembechler's death in November 2006. While the majority of the speeches focused on how Schembechler will be remembered, Morris spoke about the things he will miss in his coach's absence. "I will miss having the conversations with him about the good old days," he said. "Most importantly, I will miss hearing how much love and pride he had for Michigan - the school, the players and the fans."[9]
U-M's career rushing record
Michigan career rushing yards leaders:[6]
Rank | Name | Attempts | Net yds | Yds/Att | Touchdowns | Long | Start | End |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Mike Hart | 983 | 4911 | 5.0 | 39 | 64 | 2004 | 2007 |
2 | Anthony Thomas | 924 | 4472 | 4.8 | 55 | 80 | 1997 | 2000 |
3 | Jamie Morris | 806 | 4392 | 5.5 | 25 | 68 | 1984 | 1987 |
4 | Tyrone Wheatley | 688 | 4178 | 6.1 | 47 | 88 | 1991 | 1994 |
5 | Butch Woolfolk | 717 | 3850 | 5.4 | 29 | 92 | 1978 | 1981 |
U-M's single-season rushing record
Michigan single-season rushing leaders:[6]
Rank | Name | Attempts | Net yds | Yds/Att | Year |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Tim Biakabutuka | 303 | 1818 | 6.0 | 1995 |
2 | Anthony Thomas | 319 | 1733 | 5.4 | 2000 |
3 | Jamie Morris | 282 | 1703 | 6.0 | 1987 |
4 | Chris Perry | 338 | 1674 | 5.0 | 2003 |
5 | Mike Hart | 318 | 1562 | 4.9 | 2006 |
U-M's career kickoff return yards record
Michigan career kickoff return yardage leaders:[6]
Rank | Name | Returns | Yards | Long | Begin | End |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Steve Breaston | 81 | 1993 | 95 | 2003 | 2006 |
2 | Anthony Carter | 63 | 1606 | 67 | 1979 | 1982 |
3 | Desmond Howard | 45 | 1211 | 95 | 1989 | 1991 |
4 | Jamie Morris | 51 | 1027 | 80 | 1984 | 1987 |
5 | Mercury Hayes | 53 | 999 | 47 | 1992 | 1995 |
Professional career
Morris set Michigan's all-time rushing records, yet his smaller stature (5 feet, 7 inches) led to a fourth round draft pick during the
During Morris' NFL career, none of his teams made the playoffs, but the
Morris played one final season of professional football with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League in 1991. Morris ran for 591 yards and caught 28 passes for 263 yards in 12 regular season games. He also returned kicks for 435 yards and scored three touchdowns on a team that struggled to a 1-13 start and finished in last place at 3-15.
Life after football
Morris worked for the University of Michigan Athletic Department as a Development Manager from 1998-2010. He was responsible for donor relations and facilitating the campaign to raise $100 million by 2008.[2] In 2005, Morris hosted the U-M Football Bust put on by the U-M Club of Greater Detroit. He also The host of the talkshow called the M Zone on Sports Talk 1050 WTKA in Ann Arbor.[16]
See also
- Lists of Michigan Wolverines football statistical leaders
Notes
- ^ a b c d White, Gordon S. (1987-01-01). "Rose Bowl: Added incentive for one Morris". The New York Times. Retrieved 2007-12-06.
- ^ a b c "Jamie Morris: All-Purpose yardage leader". Those Who Stay Will Be Champions. 2006-07-17. Retrieved 2007-12-06.
- ^ "Big Ten Football: Individual Records (All Games)" (PDF). The Big Ten Conference. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-02-29. Retrieved 2008-01-25.
- ^ "Record Book" (PDF). University of Michigan & Host Interactive. 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-02-29. Retrieved 2008-01-25.
- ^ "Outback Bowl records". The Outback Bowl. Retrieved 2007-12-06.
- ^ a b c d "Michigan Football Statistic Archive Query Page". Regents of the University of Michigan. 2003. Archived from the original on 2007-11-12. Retrieved 2007-12-06.
- ISBN 978-1-58261-353-6. Retrieved 2007-12-06.
- Ann Arbor News. 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-06.
- ^ Reid, Andy; Herring, Chris (2006-11-22). "Bo will always be here: Thousands attend memorial at Big House". The Michigan Daily. Retrieved 2007-12-06.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "1988 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2023-09-24.
- ^ "Jamie Morris (big games)". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference, LLC. Archived from the original on 2009-01-07. Retrieved 2008-01-24.
- ^ Krauss, Andy (2005-05-15). "Flashback: Morris Set the Bar High". The Official Site of the Washington Redskins. Archived from the original on March 24, 2006. Retrieved 2007-12-06.
- ^ "1989 Washington Redskins". databaseFootball.com. databaseSports.com. Retrieved 2007-12-10.
- ^ "1988 Washington Redskins". databaseFootball.com. databaseSports.com. Retrieved 2007-12-10.
- ^ "1990 New England Patriots". databaseFootball.com. databaseSports.com. Retrieved 2007-12-10.
- ^ "Annual Michigan Football Bust". University of Michigan Club of Greater Detroit. Archived from the original on 2007-03-11. Retrieved 2007-12-07.
External links
- Photograph of Morris (#23) from Bentley Historical Library
- Career statistics and player information from Pro Football Reference