Photo Gallery by Brent Lyday and Paul Bryan

Texas A&M University-Commerce president Dr. Dan Jones and athletic director Carlton Cooper announced today the hiring of Guy Morriss as the new head football coach.

"We are very excited to have Guy Morriss join our Lion athletic family. He brings a wealth of football knowledge and relationships to our program," said Cooper. "When we started this search, we were looking for a football coach to take our program in a new direction and build a program nationally recognized. We have selected the right person by choosing Guy Morriss to lead our football program."

The former head coach at Baylor University from 2003-2007 and the University of Kentucky from 2001-2002 brings an impressive background that includes a 15-year playing career in the NFL. Morriss attended Sam Houston High School in Arlington and later Texas Christian University in Fort Worth. He then went on to the NFL where he played for the Philadelphia Eagles (1973-1983) and the New England Patriots (1984-87). As a player, he participated in Super Bowl XV with the Eagles and Super Bowl XX with the Patriots.

Following his playing days, Morriss began his coaching career as an offensive line coach with the New England Patriots from 1988 to 1989 under head coach and NFL Hall of Famer Raymond Berry. After spending a season as the offensive coordinator at Mansfield High School in 1991, Morriss was selected as head coach of the Washington Marauders of the Professional Spring Football League in 1997, but the league ceased operations prior to the start of the season.

From 1992 to 1993, he coached the offensive line at Valdosta State University before returning to the NFL in 1994 as a member of Buddy Ryan's Arizona Cardinals staff. Morriss then spent the 1995 campaign with the Canadian Football League's San Antonio Texans, where they were second in the CFL in points scored and advanced to the semifinals of the Grey Cup playoffs. He spent the 1996 season as the offensive line coach at Mississippi State before moving on to the University of Kentucky. At Kentucky, he spent four seasons as the assistant head coach and offensive line coach before being promoted to head coach. In Morriss' two seasons as Kentucky's head coach, 10 Wildcats earned All-SEC recognition, three were named All-American and 43 garnered academic All-SEC honors.

Morriss was then named the head football coach at Baylor University on December 11, 2002. As the Bears' head coach, Morriss was instrumental in raising over $10 million towards football projects including a new on-campus practice facility: The Highers Athletic Complex & Simpson Athletics and Academic Center also including the Lee and Elaine Harrington Recruiting Center. His student-athletes were successful on and off the field as 58 student-athletes earned academic all-Big 12 Conference honors and 37 earned all-Big 12 Conference athletic recognition. He also revised and improved the Baylor strength and conditioning, academic support services and disciplinary programs that have been carried on through the remainder of the athletic department.

During the 2008 season, Morriss served as the executive associate head coach for football development and offensive line coach at Kentucky State University in Frankfort, Kentucky. At KSU, he had an offensive lineman earn second team all-conference honors as well as another named to the all-academic team. The Thorobreds offensive line averaged 168.8 yards on the ground and another 183.4 yards through the air.