Morgan Heads to Marietta
After 14 successful seasons highlighted by two State Championships and putting the Chesapeake school on the map nationally, Rich Morgan has decided to leave as the Head Football Coach of the Oscar Smith Tigers.
Morgan, 46, will be heading to Georgia to be the new Head Football Coach of the Marietta Blue Devils, he confirmed to VirginiaPreps.com on Wednesday.
"I lived in Georgia for a number of years and Marietta High School has always been known for excellence in a school district and their football with a lot of tradition. When the opening came up this year, it's something I expressed interest in, went through the interview process and they called me today to offer me," Morgan told VirginiaPreps.com.
A native of Auburn, New York who played his College Football at Canisius, Morgan departs after compiling a record of 164-20 overall at Oscar Smith. His Tigers also won six regional titles, a record 12 consecutive Southeastern District crowns and currently own an 82-game winning streak during the regular season against district foes.
Leaving wasn't an easy call for Morgan.
"It's difficult since I've been here 14 years, poured my heart and soul into this place, and these kids have poured their hearts and soul into this program day in and day out. It definitely was very hard to walk away from a team that will easily be considered the front-runner for a State Championship next year," Morgan admitted.
"But at the same time it's a decision I thought was good for me and my family. Opportunities like this don't come around all the time. It's such a great community and a great place. If you don't take it now, when would you take it?"
In 2008, Morgan guided Oscar Smith to an undefeated 15-0 season, capped with the school's first State Championship by beating Osbourn 54-24 at Virginia Tech's Lane Stadium. That Tigers team finished ranked #6 in the country by USA Today.
Three years later in 2011, the Tigers returned to the State Championship game and beat Centreville 47-21 at the University of Virginia's Scott Stadium to capture their second title in four years.
The 2015 Tigers surprised many - including its own fan base - as they reeled off 13 straight wins to start the season, despite numerous key graduation losses and transfer departures. Even though the squad returned only one defensive starter from the previous year, Oscar Smith rallied from fourth quarter deficits on three occasions against city rivals Grassfield, Indian River and Western Branch, winning each by three points or less.
Perhaps no win was more satisfying though than when they toppled 2014 State Champ Ocean Lakes - ranked as high as sixth nationally - by a count of 29-19 in the regional semifinals, avenging a defeat to the Dolphins in the 6A-South Region Championship from the previous year.
Morgan's final game as the Tigers' Head Coach came on December 12th at UVA, where his team's undefeated dream season came to an end in a 49-42 heart-breaking loss to Westfield in triple-overtime.
During Morgan's tenure, the Tigers rose to national prominence. They've won 11 games or more in 12 consecutive seasons - currently the longest such streak in the state - and became one of the most prolific offenses on the East Coast. Since Morgan's arrival, Oscar Smith has averaged 37.1 points per game, nearly double the program's 19.7PPG in the three seasons prior to him taking over.
"I think I'm most proud of the fact that we developed young men of character and integrity. We raised them up in a culture of greatness. We got them to strive for goals and achieve goals that quite honestly nobody ever thought we could do when I got here in 2002," Morgan said.
"When I got here in 2002, all I heard for so long was how these kids didn't know how to win and what they couldn't do. To see us on TV, hoisting State Championship trophies and things like that show how far we've come. But I think the quality of young men that we've put out of this program over the last 14 years and the things they've gone out to do in their lives, people they've become, is what I'm most proud of."
Marietta finished with a record of 3-7 overall in 2015. It marked their second straight 3-7 finish after going 8-3 the year before.
On the Marietta coaching staff this past season was Scott Brunet, who was an assistant coach for the Tigers for 16 seasons, including in their state title runs of 2008 and 2011.
"We're going to try to take the same blueprint that we put in place here at Oscar Smith and produce the same results down there," Morgan commented.
"We have a certain way that we play football that's been successful and a certain way we do business. I'm hoping that will transition there and be a positive for that community because they are very supportive of football and want to give them a great product on the field as well as produce good young men off the field."
Oscar Smith is the fourth public school in the Tidewater area this off-season to have a coaching change. Chris Scott left Ocean Lakes for Bishop Sullivan, while Green Run selected Justin Conyers as its new Head Football Coach and Great Bridge hired Steve O'Neal.
As Principal Paul Joseph and Athletic Director Todd Parker begin their search for a new Head Coach at Oscar Smith, Morgan indicated that he will offer up as much support, help and advice as possible if asked.
"It's a place that I love and we're leaving on good terms," Morgan noted. "Ultimately, it's other people's decision, but I'll do anything I can to help this program transition and get another coach in here who's going to continue to love these kids, care for them and make them better men."
Matthew Hatfield serves as State Basketball Analyst for VirginiaPreps.com, part of the Rivals.com Network, and is a staff writer for Tar Heel Illustrated. Check out Hatfield’s Twitter page for more sports related updates, and you can also read his work in the Suffolk News Herald. To contact Matthew, please e-mail hatfieldsports2k4@yahoo.com, and don’t forget to listen to him every Saturday at 10AM on ESPN Radio 94.1, plus watch him on the Cox 11 Sports Report.