We have seven commits for next year and Morgan is lead recruiter for five of the seven. We know from past experience that he has an eye for talent, so I am excited for these five recruits. All seven recruits are a good start for a great class.
Reese Morgan is a Recruiting Machine
- Thread starter hawkguy77
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Not only a great recruiter and football coach but even more importantly, a wonderful human being!
saw him walking in to support the Hawkeye baseball team Sunday with a smile on his face. good guy!
Before Reese took over as the DL coach ... Coach Kaz had instilled a seemingly toxic environment on the DL. Morale on the DL was poor and attrition at the position was sky-high.
Now, when you look at Reese talk about "his guys" ... there's this spark in his eyes. He clearly loves mentoring those guys ... and he loves trying to push them to play at the fullest potential. Since he's taken over, the attrition on the DL has slowed to a trickle. The only ones that are really coming to mind are Harris (because he got moved from DE to DT) and Slater (seemingly a combo of issues of health and grades).
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My cousin saw BF at Omaha airport today catching a flight to Chicago. Maybe there to work on Heinrich and Hickman...?
Reese is great. What an incredible coach to have at Iowa. Coaches like him, Parker and KOK are all getting older and I hope we can find others that are the same great type of coaches. Not a given. We take some things for granted because no one talks about a guy who just does his job well with no fan fare. He will give anyone a shot as long as they are a worker and show interest in improvement.
We are seeing polasek, bell are out receuiting and Bell is going after bigger names where as polasek is looking for the diamond in the ruff type (plum, ince) woods and Wilson are 2 young coaches to keep an eye on.. Iowa has a really young staff who can learn a lot from the old guys still in the building.
Reese is a top notch coach and great guy. First met him 12 years ago in St. Thomas when he was cruising with the Hawks. He saw me on the beach with my Hawk hat on, we had a great chat and have communicated back and forth over the years.
I will hate to see him retire down the road. I hope Bell is learning from him, see him as Reese's replacement.
I will hate to see him retire down the road. I hope Bell is learning from him, see him as Reese's replacement.
I believe DL will remain solid if not better when RM retires and Kelvin Bell take over the position that he is being groomed at presently. Broderick Binns seems like a natural backup to Bell and another internal staff progression. RM will be 67 in late June. I'd wager that Morgan retires when AJE turns pro (2 to 3 more years). Hopefully, his guys will continue to dominate lil Nebby.
IIRC, Reese was head coach of one of the Iowa City football teams and won several championships there, before he joined the Hawkeye staff.
I bring that up because the High School background helped in his recruiting efforts in Iowa, especially, because all the other Iowa coaches knew him or knew of him.
Not sure if there is another Reese Morgan out there in an Iowa high School that is both successful and knows a lot of high school coaches and willing to make the jump. I imagine his kids would have to be grown, just because I think there is a lot of windshield time involved.
I will put Greg Hamman’s Name out there. Coaches at Dyersville Beckmann. Former Hawk player under Hayden Fry. Should be 54 or 55 but looks like he is in his 30’s. His dad was a school Superintendent at Bellevue, so he may have a lot of connections around the state.
No idea if he can recruit, though. He was a WR and KR. Not sure if he knows how to teach DEs and DTs.
I bring that up because the High School background helped in his recruiting efforts in Iowa, especially, because all the other Iowa coaches knew him or knew of him.
Not sure if there is another Reese Morgan out there in an Iowa high School that is both successful and knows a lot of high school coaches and willing to make the jump. I imagine his kids would have to be grown, just because I think there is a lot of windshield time involved.
I will put Greg Hamman’s Name out there. Coaches at Dyersville Beckmann. Former Hawk player under Hayden Fry. Should be 54 or 55 but looks like he is in his 30’s. His dad was a school Superintendent at Bellevue, so he may have a lot of connections around the state.
No idea if he can recruit, though. He was a WR and KR. Not sure if he knows how to teach DEs and DTs.
Staff has a good mix. Phil Parker is only 55. It seems like he's older as he's been at Iowa the entire time KF has been here. He easily has another decade of coaching if he wants to do it. That is an eternity in the coaching world. KOK is about the same age as KF (64). He keeps himself in good physical condition like KF does. But yes, to your point the older guys bring a lot to the staff just like the younger guys do. Morgan has instant respect in just about any high school in Iowa, Nebraska, Dakotas, etc. as he has spent the time getting to know the staffs at all of those places.
Morgan coached at Benton Community before going to IC West and reviving their program. Coached Outland Trophy winner Chad Hennings at Benton before Hennings went on to Air Force. Hiring him was one of the best decisions KF has made.
The caveat here is that working with young people like he does (and like I do) ... it helps keep you young. It helps to put an extra spring in your step. It's part of what makes you want to get out of bed each day.
I know shockingly many former teachers and coaches who decided to retire ... and they then died not too long thereafter. Perhaps just a freaky correlated set of coincidences ... but it certainly does make me be in any hurry to retire. Hopefully Reese feels the same way.
Neighbor is retiring as coach at West Dubuque. Said Reese stopped by last week to chat. Not only football coaches, but other coaches as well in the school. Guy is so FIRST CLASS. Will hate to see him retire - if so, hope he keeps tabs on program!!
That tells me that you probably have a number of hobbies that you find fulfilling! Some people aren't as well rounded ... and much of how they view themselves is wrapped up in their teaching or coaching career. Anyhow ... it's good that you're still kickin' around!
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