Baylor Is Going After SMU's Chad Morris, Everyone Should Be Afraid

Baylor is going hard after Chad Morris to become its next head football coach, according to Football Scoop. Morris is currently in his second season at SMU, where he has the Mustangs with a 5-6 record this season. He was previously the offensive coordinator at Clemson from 2011 through 2014.

The 47-year-old Morris cut his teeth in the Texas high school football ranks, working as a head coach from 1994 through 2009 at various stops. That tour culminated with back-to-back 16-0 state championship seasons at Lake Travis High School. He was hired by Tulsa as the team’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach the next season and moved on to Clemson in 2011.

Morris has deep ties in the state and his first two recruiting classes at SMU have been completely made up of players from within the state. That, plus his reputation as an innovative offensive mind must be what is appealing to Baylor, since Morris’ 7-16 record at as a head coach can’t be what convinced them.

Baylor is searching for a permanent head coach after it fired Art Briles this summer and Jim Grobe in an interim capacity for the 2016 season. Morris is a native of Texas and Baylor obviously believes in what he’s done at SMU, turning a program that had a 1-11 record before he came to near bowl-eligibility this season. Morris also authored a stunning 38-16 win over then-11th ranked Houston earlier in the year.

Morris would seem to be a great fit at Baylor given his offensive philosophy and Texas roots. In fact, given the talent the football program has been pulling in over the past few years, Morris could turn the Bears into a monster in the Big 12. With his offensive philosophy, recruiting prowess and Texas ties and Baylor’s money behind him, this could be a perfect match.

We’ll see if the school can actually get a deal done.