Sending off Stew
Stew Morrill has become and forever will be a legend tied with Utah State’s men’s basketball.
In his seventeen years coaching at Utah State, he broke record after record and elevated Utah State to be in the 6th-best winning percentage in the nation. However Morrill had many other accomplishments before his coaching carrier at Utah State.
“There is an old expression,” said Wyoming head coach Larry Shyatt after the game on Thursday, “‘You never know what you have until you don’t have it anymore,’ and we are losing a great one, not just a great coach — a great coach and a great man.”
As a collegiate athlete, he played for Rick’s College, then with the Gonzaga Bulldogs. After his college career he played professionally in Europe before moving on to coaching. Morrill had coached basketball for twenty-three years before coming to Utah State University, but he will always be known for his work at USU.
What the Aggies will remember the most about Morrill will be how he led Utah State’s basketball team to a 402-156 record and nearly 73 percent win total, achieved under his leadership. He became the all-time win leader at Utah State in 2008 when the Aggies beat the Boise State Broncos, giving him 225 wins at the time.
Morrill continued to lead his team to multiple 20-win seasons and four-straight Western Athletic Conference titles in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011. Achievements like these are what earned Morrill the WAC Coach of the Year award in 2009, 2010 and 2011. When Morrill began at USU, he was coaching in the Big West. His team then made the jump to the WAC and moved again in 2013 to the Mountain West.
After 17 years with Utah State, Morrill announced his retirement during the season, and his last game was Thursday, a loss to Wyoming in the MW tournament. Even though there are many who are sad to see Morrill go, they understand that after coaching for 40 years, he has earned his retirement.
During Morrill’s last home game against Colorado State on March 7, fans came together to help give him a unique send off. More than fifty players from the past came together along with former USU coaches to show their appreciation for Morrill’s work at Utah State.
Students gave him a framed jacket with his name and the number 17 on the back for all the years he has coached at USU. Morrill also received a jersey form his bosses that had the number 40 to signify all his years of coaching throughout his career.
“It’s an emotional thing,” said Morrill after the Colorado State game. “Then the game starts and away you go.”
Even though Thursday’s game was a loss, fans had reason to celebrate all that Morrill achieved over the years.
Among his student-athletes, colleagues, friends and family, Stew was known for his hard work, dedication, honesty and concern for the welfare of his student-athletes. It was through hard work and dedication that he was able to lead the Utah State basketball team to achieve so much.
Fans can only hope that in the years ahead the Aggie basketball team continues to succeed, following the path that Morrill set.
— mckaylamontierth@gmail.com