Miami Hurricanes legendary baseball coach Jim Morris was voted into the 2020 induction class of the National College Baseball Hall of Fame earlier this morning, a moment that recognized a long and storied career.
“It's something to be included among all the great coaches as a Hall of Famer and I'm so deeply honored,” Morris said. “It was a long journey filled with a lot of games, but I'm honored to be in this position today. I couldn't have done it without the help of so many people, from players and coaches to administrators and, of course, my family. I'm just very excited about being part of this illustrious crowd.”
Morris – along with former MLB star Jason Varitek, who played for Morris at Georgia Tech, and National Baseball Hall of Famer Paul Molitor – headlines a group of 12 legends who make up the Class of 2020, which will be inducted as a part of a virtual College Baseball Night of Champions ceremony later this month.
"There is perhaps no more fitting honor for Coach Morris than to be named a member of the National College Baseball Hall of Fame,” Miami director of athletics Blake James said. “Coach is college baseball. Over more than five decades in the game, he established a standard of excellence and impacted programs, coaches and players across the nation. While coach Morris is synonymous with the University of Miami for his success on the field, he was so much more than that to our University. On behalf of the entire UM family, I congratulate Coach, his wife, Nhan, and their family on this well-deserved honor."
Known as “3,” Morris is one of the most successful head coaches in college baseball history, with 1,594 career victories as a Division I skipper. The three-time national coach of the year and 2008 Atlantic Coast Conference Coach of the Year retired as one of only 12 coaches from all levels of college baseball with over 1,500 wins.
In 25 seasons at Miami, Morris won 1,090 games, made the NCAA postseason in 23 straight years, reached the College World Series 13 times and won national championships in 1999 and 2001, as well as claimed the ACC regular season title in 2008, 2014 and 2016.
Morris guided the Hurricanes to the CWS in each of his first six years at UM, setting an NCAA record. In addition, Morris won 17 of 23 NCAA Regional appearances at UM, including a record 13 straight to start his tenure in Coral Gables. He made a remarkable 32 consecutive trips to the NCAA tournament from 1985 to 2016, including his time at Georgia Tech.
“I want to thank my family,” Morris said. “I am so thankful for their love and support. It was a burden on me, and I know it was a burden on them, just the amount of time that you spend away from home to be a college coach. But they were always there for me and always supported me and I am very appreciative of that.”
Morris directed the Hurricanes to a 1,090-472-3 (.696) mark since arriving in 1994. Including his 12 seasons at Georgia Tech (1982-93), Morris forged a 1,590-715-4 (.689) Division I record in 37 years as a head coach. Overall, Morris was the head coach at the collegiate level for 41 seasons, spending the first four at DeKalb (Ga.) Community College from 1976-79, and registered a 1,721-754-4 (.694) overall ledger.
In his 25-season tenure at Miami, no program qualified for the College World Series as much as Morris and his Hurricanes. Miami made it to Omaha in 13 of Morris’ 25 seasons in Coral Gables – including most recently in 2016, when Miami was awarded the No. 3 national seed for the NCAA postseason.
With his induction, Morris becomes the sixth Miami Hurricane to gain enshrinement in the National College Baseball Hall of Fame, joining former head coach Ron Fraser (Class of 2006), former assistant coach Skip Bertman (2006), left-hander pitcher Neal Heaton (2008), right-handed pitcher Alex Fernandez (2014) and outfielder Mike Fiore (2014).
“It's something to be included among all the great coaches as a Hall of Famer and I'm so deeply honored,” Morris said. “It was a long journey filled with a lot of games, but I'm honored to be in this position today. I couldn't have done it without the help of so many people, from players and coaches to administrators and, of course, my family. I'm just very excited about being part of this illustrious crowd.”
Morris – along with former MLB star Jason Varitek, who played for Morris at Georgia Tech, and National Baseball Hall of Famer Paul Molitor – headlines a group of 12 legends who make up the Class of 2020, which will be inducted as a part of a virtual College Baseball Night of Champions ceremony later this month.
"There is perhaps no more fitting honor for Coach Morris than to be named a member of the National College Baseball Hall of Fame,” Miami director of athletics Blake James said. “Coach is college baseball. Over more than five decades in the game, he established a standard of excellence and impacted programs, coaches and players across the nation. While coach Morris is synonymous with the University of Miami for his success on the field, he was so much more than that to our University. On behalf of the entire UM family, I congratulate Coach, his wife, Nhan, and their family on this well-deserved honor."
Known as “3,” Morris is one of the most successful head coaches in college baseball history, with 1,594 career victories as a Division I skipper. The three-time national coach of the year and 2008 Atlantic Coast Conference Coach of the Year retired as one of only 12 coaches from all levels of college baseball with over 1,500 wins.
In 25 seasons at Miami, Morris won 1,090 games, made the NCAA postseason in 23 straight years, reached the College World Series 13 times and won national championships in 1999 and 2001, as well as claimed the ACC regular season title in 2008, 2014 and 2016.
Morris guided the Hurricanes to the CWS in each of his first six years at UM, setting an NCAA record. In addition, Morris won 17 of 23 NCAA Regional appearances at UM, including a record 13 straight to start his tenure in Coral Gables. He made a remarkable 32 consecutive trips to the NCAA tournament from 1985 to 2016, including his time at Georgia Tech.
“I want to thank my family,” Morris said. “I am so thankful for their love and support. It was a burden on me, and I know it was a burden on them, just the amount of time that you spend away from home to be a college coach. But they were always there for me and always supported me and I am very appreciative of that.”
Morris directed the Hurricanes to a 1,090-472-3 (.696) mark since arriving in 1994. Including his 12 seasons at Georgia Tech (1982-93), Morris forged a 1,590-715-4 (.689) Division I record in 37 years as a head coach. Overall, Morris was the head coach at the collegiate level for 41 seasons, spending the first four at DeKalb (Ga.) Community College from 1976-79, and registered a 1,721-754-4 (.694) overall ledger.
In his 25-season tenure at Miami, no program qualified for the College World Series as much as Morris and his Hurricanes. Miami made it to Omaha in 13 of Morris’ 25 seasons in Coral Gables – including most recently in 2016, when Miami was awarded the No. 3 national seed for the NCAA postseason.
With his induction, Morris becomes the sixth Miami Hurricane to gain enshrinement in the National College Baseball Hall of Fame, joining former head coach Ron Fraser (Class of 2006), former assistant coach Skip Bertman (2006), left-hander pitcher Neal Heaton (2008), right-handed pitcher Alex Fernandez (2014) and outfielder Mike Fiore (2014).
