Ask Dan Morris about his personal accomplishments and he is quick to deflect any praise to the teams he has coached over the years. But there is no denying the hand he played in the championships listed on banners that line the ceiling of Bird Arena.
And it is no surprise that his decision to step down from his head coaching position after 12 seasons was meant for the good of the team.
In early August, Ohio announced that Jonathon Sheridan, a former assistant coach under Morris, would head the program. Morris will continue in his role of Bird Arena’s director.
“I know in the short term (stepping down) doesn’t really make sense,” Morris said. “But in the long term, now you’ve got the facility’s stability and the coach stability, since it’s not one person — you’ve got two people, you’ve got good checks and balances for each other and can grow the program even stronger.”
The former coach’s Ohio ties began north of the border, where he played junior hockey and was scouted by former Ohio coach Craig McCarthy.
McCarthy said he knew Ohio was getting a special player from the moment he first saw him play.
“Not only was he one of the best players in the (American Collegiate Hockey Association), we also probably had the best leader,” McCarthy said. “If you could sort of carve out the perfect person for the program at the time, he was that person.”
Under McCarthy’s tutelage, Morris won three consecutive national titles, beginning in 1995. He had an illustrious career at Ohio, playing in 107 games, with 123 goals and 218 points — a program record that stood until Tyler Pilmore broke it last season.
McCarthy said Morris’ achievements as a player helped him become a successful coach.
“He was always a step ahead of everybody,” McCarthy said. “He was one of those players that could tell you what was going to happen — and this wasn’t even necessarily a minute or two minutes (before) — it could be two weeks before and he could tell what was going to happen based upon the situation.”
After college, Morris signed on as Athens’s high school’s head coach before joining the Bobcats as an assistant coach in 2000 and taking the head job the next season.
At the helm of the Bobcats, Morris won at least 20 games in each of his 12 seasons and posted a club record of 344-120. He coached Ohio to a ACHA national championship in 2004, as well as numerous regular season and tournament championships.
Morris also received the ACHA Division I coach of the year recognition in 2004 and the Central States Collegiate Hockey League coach of the year honors four times, most recently in 2010.
During his tenure with the Bobcats, Morris also instructed Athens Youth Hockey Association programs.
“I try to remind people I’m a product of Athens Youth Hockey,” Morris said. “I got my first head coaching position in Athens Youth Hockey, so it means a lot to me to be involved in Athens Youth Hockey any way that I can.”
Phil Oberlin, a Bobcats defenseman from Athens and the current coach of the Bobcats Division II team, said the relationships Morris has made in Athens are admirable.
“He’s been a part of (Athens Youth Hockey) since he’s been here at OU as a player and coaching the high school team,” Oberlin said. “I think he does a phenomenal job of working with parents (and) coaches of the organization and really helping it to grow.”
Pilmore, the former Ohio forward who took down Morris’ record last year and now plays for the Toledo Walleye, an affiliate of the Chicago Blackhawks and Detroit Red Wings, said Morris helped mold him into the player he is today.
“Coming in to OU, I never really got the ice time or the opportunity to become an offensive player, but as soon as I got there Coach Morris gave me the opportunity,” Pilmore said. “Without Coach Morris, I don’t think I’d be anywhere near where I am right now as a player.”
Jim Fuhs, a former Ohio center, played for Morris from 2004-08. His brother, Jared, began his Bobcats career the next fall.
The duo has a unique relationship with Morris because in 2011, after their mother, Becky Fuhs, was diagnosed with colon cancer, Morris helped spearhead a charity game that pitted the current squad against former Ohio players. The game raised money that went to the American Cancer Society.
Becky dropped the puck to begin the inaugural game, where her sons squared off on opposing teams. She passed away fewer than six months later.
This past year, Jim said the charity games raised $10,000. These games will continue this upcoming season.
The support shown by his former coach has been invaluable to Jim.
“It’s hard to put into words how much he meant to me and my whole family.”
mk277809@ohiou.edu
@BrandonKors
