The play that has secured Kirk Morrison’s legacy was grabbing the microphone the night of Jan. 12, 2004 at Cox Arena before a sellout basketball crowd to announce he was returning for his senior year, turning down NFL draft money for a season that could end with a bowl game.
2004-08-19
By Tom Shanahan, San Diego Hall of Champions
Years from now Kirk Morrison’s place in San Diego State football lore will remain secure. Players who turn down NFL money for the college experience become beloved figures, transcending star status.
Morrison has the numbers, eighth on SDSU’s career tackles list, the All-American credentials from the 2003 post-season selections and the 2004 preseason teams, to make a name for himself in Aztecs history. But the play that has secured his legacy was grabbing the microphone the night of Jan. 12, 2004 at Cox Arena before a sellout basketball crowd to announce he was returning for his senior year, turning down NFL draft money for a season he hopes is the Aztecs’ first bowl trip since 1998.
“Making the announcement at the basketball game was his idea,” said Thom Kaumeyer, SDSU’s defensive coordinator. “It shows he’s trying to help the other programs at his school. (Basketball) Coach (Steve) Fisher was very complimentary of him, and it got the alumni excited. It says a lot about his character.”
Other star players will eventually slip down the SDSU career stat list and fade from memory. Will Blackwell, the receiver who left for the NFL after his junior season in 1996, comes to mind. Az-zahir Hakim lettered four years, but there were whispers during his senior year he didn’t come back from a mid-season injury to protect his draft status.
It takes a Marshall Faulk, the three-time All-American who led the Aztecs to the 1991 Freedom Bowl, to receive a pass from fans for leaving school early.
Morrison, a 6-foot-2, 240-pounder featured on the cover of the team’s media guide, has been a starter at SDSU since midway through his redshirt freshman year in 2001.
His senior season, which opens Sept. 4 against Idaho State at Qualcomm Stadium, is Morrison’s fourth as a starter overall and third since Tom Craft took over the program, leading the Aztecs to a 6-6 record last year that was the first non-losing season since 1998. Captain Kirk was a College Football News All-American last year and the Mountain West Conference Defensive Player of the Year.
“I’m more excited right now because at the end of the season, you reflect how things went,” Morrison said. “You start to talk to Coach and think about what we’ve accomplished since he’s been here. The first year he was here, we had the best passing offense in the nation, and the second year, we had the best defense (ranked eighth nationally). So what I’m thinking is what will happen when we combine the two? I believe this is the year that things will coincide with each and create great things.”
Morrison was projected as a third-round draft pick last year, but he’s mentioned as a possible first-round choice in 2005. He is on the watch lists for the Butkus, Lombardi, Nagurski and Bednarik awards.
When Morrison came out of Oakland Bishop O’Dowd High five seasons ago, there were concerns about his speed. His high school coach, Paul Perenon, was upset with nearby Cal and other Pac-10 schools for failing to offer his star linebacker/fullback a scholarship. Perenon considered Morrison on par with his other former players who have gone on to play in the NFL.
Cal’s loss was SDSU’s gain. The kid from the Bay Area not only found a home in Southern California, he quickly grew into one of the Aztecs’ most popular athletes on campus.
Morrison was the first SDSU player named first-team All-American since center Mike Malano in 1999 and the first defensive player since defensive back Henry Williams in 1978. He is SDSU’s 19th first-team All-American.
“It helps to have a marquee guy like Kirk who is always saying and doing the right things,” Kaumeyer said. “He practices hard, plays hard and is respectful of the game.”
Morrison, noted for his nose for the football, led a revived defense that was first in the Mountain West Conference in addition to climbing from 95th in the nation to eighth. Kaumeyer said he’s the kind of the athlete who can excel while also elevating his team’s play.
“The defense feels like we’re ready, ” he said. “Our job is to keep the opposing team out of the end zone whther they are on the 1-yard line, the 20-yard line or the other side of the field.”
Morrison opens the season ranked eighth on SDSU’s career tackles list with 281. He finished 2003 fourth in the conference with 115 tackles and led the league in tackles for a loss with 17. He was also second in the MWC in forced fumbles.
One more place you can expect to find his name listed is in the NFL draft, but not until 2005.
SPORTS AT LUNCH
San Diego State football coach Tom Craft and All-American linebacker Kirk Morrison will both speak at 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 8 at the San Diego Hall of Champions Sports at Lunch Speaker Series.
The price is $25 for Hall of Champions members and $35 for non-members. The San Diego Hall of Champions Sports Museum is located in the Federal Building at 2131 Pan American Plaza in Balboa Park. For reservations, call 619-699-2321.
Posted on September 24, 2004 by San Diego Hall of Champions
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