Referring to Chandler Morris as a “grizzled veteran” might be a stretch. He’s pretty clean-shaven for a “grizzled” vet.
But not arguing the veteran part, Morris brings years of college football experience in his suitcase to Charlottesville.
Morris, the son of Chad Morris, the pass game coordinator at Texas State, and a former Power 4 head coach, was the no-doubt QB1 going into Virginia’s preseason camp.
The 6’2” Morris will start behind center for the Cavaliers after a spectacular season in 2024 at North Texas.
With the Mean Green, Morris passed for 3,774 yards and 31 touchdowns, while rushing for 240 yards on 60 carries.
The passing yards were good for fifth nationally, and his 31 scoring strikes were the fourth highest in the nation.
North Texas, however, was just one stop on Morris’ journey to UVA.
Morris initially committed to play for Arkansas out of high school in 2019, to play for his father, who was the Razorbacks’ head coach at the time.
Chad Morris was fired in November 2019, leading Chandler Morris to decommit from Arkansas.
Thus, his sojourn to Charlottesville began.
Morris quickly committed to Oklahoma in January of 2020. After a freshman season of limited playing time at OU, Morris moved to TCU, then on to Denton, Texas, and NTSU.
After the video-game numbers Morris recorded last season, the fertile transfer portal waited, with UVA ultimately landing the big prize.
Monday, I had the opportunity to speak with Morris directly, immediately pointing out that, being “old-school,” this transfer portal world was a bit overwhelming, and Morris agreed.
“I’m sure it is,” Morris replied. “It’s overwhelming for most everyone playing college sports these days, so don’t feel bad,” added Morris.
At 24, Morris is now playing for his fourth school, going from the Big 12 to the American Athletic Conference and finally the ACC and Virginia.
He’s been a traveling man, for sure.
And Morris embraces it.
“Hey, it’s unique, it’s nothing that I ever thought I would be experiencing coming out of high school, but you know, at this position, it’s not that uncommon, it’s about situations, “said Morris.
“You go into a new locker room, and you have to learn names, learn new people and personalities, and I think my experience has helped me transition to the Virginia locker room more seamlessly. It’s helped me outside of football as well,” added Morris.
When I asked Morris about the current climate in college football with the transfer portal, and its sustainability, he surprised me with his answer.
“It’s not (sustainable),” he replied.
“I say that, even though I’m a player who has taken full advantage of the current system. In the long run, there’s got to be some serious guidelines implemented. Don’t ask me what they are, but something is going to change to create more stability,” added Morris.
Meanwhile, Virginia reaps the rewards from attaining an experienced signal-caller.
“He’s just a veteran,” Virginia offensive line coach Terry Hefferan said at an earlier press conference.
“It’s a veteran, adult, mature leadership with a personality that is kind of magnetic,” said Hefferman.
When Virginia started searching for a starting quarterback, the objective was to bring in two quarterbacks: one young and one experienced.
The young gun is a former Nebraska recruit, Daniel Kaelin, who has four years of eligibility remaining.
Morris is the hired gun.
When I asked Morris about his decision to come to Virginia, he said it was the comfort level that the coaches seemed to have in him.
“I got the feeling immediately that the coaches knew my abilities, and believed I was capable of starting from Day 1, and that’s what I was looking for,” said Morris.
The Virginia coaches must have a ton of confidence in the experience that Morris brings with him.
“There have been some times in practice when I’ve had to say, hey, this is not a good call, we need to get out of this, and the coaches trust me,” said Morris.
Being old school, or just old, I grinned, thinking, I wonder how that would have gone over if Shawn Moore had said to George Welsh, “Hey, coach, this play won’t work, we need to get rid of it.”
Welcome to College Football 2025.
Virginia’s offensive success will start with Morris and a revamped offensive line.
The Cavaliers flooded the portal with a slew of veteran offensive linemen.
That’s not lost on Morris.
“Man, that played a huge part in my decision to come here,” noted Morris. “I was aware of some of the players that they were recruiting, and believe me, that was very important in my decision. Quality and depth are huge.”
The injury bug has bitten the Cavaliers in the preseason, with two incoming offensive linemen already down. Monroe Mills is lost for the season after a spring knee injury, and Makilan Thomas is out with a broken foot.
That depth Morris spoke of might be the difference for Virginia this season.
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