Stew Morrill
{{Short description|American basketball player and coach}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2025}}
{{Infobox college coach
| name = Stew Morrill
| image = Stew Morrill at SJSU 2014.jpg
| alt =
| caption = Morrill at San Jose State in 2014
| current_title =
| current_team =
| current_conference =
| current_record =
| contract =
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1952|7|25}}
| birth_place = Provo, Utah, U.S.
| death_date =
| death_place =
| alma_mater =
| player_years1 = 1970–1972
| player_team1 = Ricks JC
| player_years2 = 1972–1974
| player_team2 = Gonzaga
| coach_years1 = 1974–1978
| coach_team1 = Gonzaga (assistant)
| coach_years2 = 1978–1986
| coach_team2 = Montana (assistant)
| coach_years3 = 1986–1991
| coach_team3 = Montana
| coach_years4 = 1991–1998
| coach_team4 = Colorado State
| coach_years5 = 1998–2015
| coach_team5 = Utah State
| overall_record = 620–294 (.678)
| bowl_record =
| tournament_record = 1–9 (NCAA Division I)
0–6 (NIT)
4–1 (CIT)
| championships =
- 2 WAC tournament (2009, 2011)
- 4 WAC regular season (2008–2011)
- 4 Big West tournament (2000, 2001, 2003, 2005)
- 3 Big West regular season (2000, 2002, 2004)
- Big Sky tournament (1991)
- Big Sky regular season (1991)
| awards =
- 3× WAC Coach of the Year (2009–2011)
- 2× Big West Coach of the Year (2000, 2002)
- Big Sky Coach of the Year (1991)
- Jim Phelan Award (2011)
| coaching_records =
}}
Stewart Morrill (born July 25, 1952) is an American college basketball coach and the former head coach of the Utah State University men's basketball team.
Biography
Morrill was an All-American at Ricks College and a two-time All-Big Sky selection for Gonzaga University. He started his coaching career in 1974 as an assistant at Gonzaga, and continued at the University of Montana under Mike Montgomery in 1978.{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=cfZLAAAAIBAJ&sjid=C-4DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6872%2C1875830 |work=Spokesman-Review |location=(Spokane, Washington) |title=Short Cuts: Stewart Morrill |date=May 6, 1978 |page=23 }}{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=wqopAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Te8DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6324%2C458489 |work=Spokesman-Review |location=(Spokane, Washington) |last=Blanchette |first=John |title=Morrill of the story: patience |date=May 1, 1986 |page=C1}} In the spring of 1986, he was promoted to head coach of the Grizzlies, and led them to an NCAA berth in 1991. Morrill coached at Colorado State University from 1991 to 1998 before resigning to go to Utah State.
Morrill and Utah State gained national attention in March 2001 for their 77–68 upset of Ohio State in overtime in the NCAA tournament.
On January 17, 2008, in an 82–78 victory over Boise State, Morrill logged his 226th Aggie victory, passing E. Lowell Romney to become the winningest coach in Utah State basketball history.
Morrill has a record of 602–281 overall (.682), and 384–143{{cite web |url=http://www.usustats.com/coaches/index.php?category=Years |title = USUStats.com - Coaching Records}} (.729) with Utah State. His 500th win came in January 2010 at Idaho, coached by his former assistant, Don Verlin. He has also racked up an incredible home record of {{winning percentage|193|13|record=y}} in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum as coach of the Aggies. Following a victory over San Jose State on March 9, 2009, Morrill became the only coach in Utah State history to have back-to-back undefeated seasons at home, extending the streak to 34 straight home wins. He is also the only Utah State coach to win thirty games in one season, a feat he accomplished in the 2008–09 season, and the 2010–11 season. During the 2009–10 season, he became the only Utah State basketball coach to win three straight regular season conference championships. The next year, he won his fourth straight regular season conference championship. Although he has a very impressive regular season record, he did not find success in the NCAA tournament, posting the second worst record, {{winning percentage|1|9|record=y}} for any coach that has made the NCAA tournament five or more times. He also has a record of 0–6 in the NIT.
With Morrill at the helm, the Aggies were one of only three Division I teams to have won at least 23 games from 1999 to 2011. The other schools are Gonzaga and Kansas. All throughout the 2000s and early 2010s under Morrill, Utah State (.764) had the fourth-best winning percentage in the nation behind Duke (.831), Kansas (.809) and Gonzaga (.799).
On January 9, 2015, USU announced that Morrill would retire at the end of the 2014–2015 season.{{Cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/12141954/utah-state-coach-stew-morrill-retire|title=Utah St. Coach Morrill to retire at season's end|date=9 January 2015}}
Head coaching record
{{CBB Yearly Record Start
|type=coach
|conference=
|postseason=
|poll=no
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead|
|name=Montana Grizzlies
|startyear=1987
|conference=Big Sky Conference
|endyear=1991
|}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 1986–87
| name = Montana
| overall = 18–11
| conference = 8–6
| confstanding = 3rd
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 1987–88
| name = Montana
| overall = 18–11
| conference = 7–9
| confstanding = T–7th
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 1988–89
| name = Montana
| overall = 20–11
| conference = 11–5
| confstanding = 3rd
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 1989–90
| name = Montana
| overall = 18–11
| conference = 10–6
| confstanding = 3rd
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = confboth
| season = 1990–91
| name = Montana
| overall = 23–8
| conference = 13–3
| confstanding = 1st
| postseason = NCAA Division I Round of 64
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subtotal
| name = Montana
| overall = 97–52 (.651)
| confrecord = 49–29 (.628)
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead|
|name=Colorado State Rams
|startyear=1991
|conference=Western Athletic Conference
|endyear=1999
|}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 1991–92
| name = Colorado State
| overall = 14–17
| conference = 8–8
| confstanding = T–8th
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 1992–93
| name = Colorado State
| overall = 17–12
| conference = 9–9
| confstanding = 5th
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 1993–94
| name = Colorado State
| overall = 15–13
| conference = 8–10
| confstanding = T–5th
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 1994–95
| name = Colorado State
| overall = 17–14
| conference = 7–11
| confstanding = T–8th
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 1995–96
| name = Colorado State
| overall = 18–12
| conference = 11–7
| confstanding = 4th
| postseason = NIT first round
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 1996–97
| name = Colorado State
| overall = 20–9
| conference = 10–6
| confstanding = 4th (Pacific)
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 1997–98
| name = Colorado State
| overall = 20–9
| conference = 8–6
| confstanding = 4th (Mountain)
| postseason = NIT first round
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subtotal
| name = Colorado State
| overall = 121–86 (.585)
| confrecord = 61–57 (.517)
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead|
|name=Utah State Aggies
|startyear=1998
|conference=Big West Conference
|endyear=2005
|}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 1998–99
| name = Utah State
| overall = 15–13
| conference = 8–8
| confstanding = 4th (Eastern)
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = confboth
| season = 1999–2000
| name = Utah State
| overall = 28–6
| conference = 16–0
| confstanding = 1st (Eastern)
| postseason = NCAA Division I Round of 64
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = conference tournament
| season = 2000–01
| name = Utah State
| overall = 28–6
| conference = 13–3
| confstanding = 2nd
| postseason = NCAA Division I Round of 32
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = conference
| season = 2001–02
| name = Utah State
| overall = 23–8
| conference = 13–5
| confstanding = T–1st
| postseason = NIT first round
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = conference tournament
| season = 2002–03
| name = Utah State
| overall = 24–9
| conference = 12–6
| confstanding = 3rd
| postseason = NCAA Division I Round of 64
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = conference
| season = 2003–04
| name = Utah State
| overall = 25–4
| conference = 17–1
| confstanding = T–1st
| postseason = NIT first round
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = conference tournament
| season = 2004–05
| name = Utah State
| overall = 24–8
| conference = 13–5
| confstanding = 2nd
| postseason = NCAA Division I Round of 64
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead|
|name=Utah State Aggies
|startyear=2005
|conference=Western Athletic Conference
|endyear=2013
|}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 2005–06
| name = Utah State
| overall = 23–9
| conference = 11–5
| confstanding = T–2nd
| postseason = NCAA Division I Round of 64
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 2006–07
| name = Utah State
| overall = 23–12
| conference = 9–7
| confstanding = 4th
| postseason = NIT first round
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = conference
| season = 2007–08
| name = Utah State
| overall = 24–11
| conference = 12–4
| confstanding = T–1st
| postseason = NIT first round
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = confboth
| season = 2008–09
| name = Utah State
| overall = 30–5
| conference = 14–2
| confstanding = 1st
| postseason = NCAA Division I Round of 64
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 2009–10
| name = Utah State
| overall = 27–8
| conference = 14–2
| confstanding = 1st
| championship = conference
| postseason = NCAA Division I Round of 64
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 2010–11
| name = Utah State
| overall = 30–4
| conference = 15–1
| confstanding = 1st
| championship = confboth
| postseason = NCAA Division I Round of 64
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 2011–12
| name = Utah State
| overall = 21–16
| conference = 8–6
| confstanding = 4th
| championship =
| postseason = CIT Runner-up
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 2012–13
| name = Utah State
| overall = 21–10
| conference = 11–7
| confstanding = T–4th
| championship =
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead|
|name=Utah State Aggies
|startyear=2013
|conference=Mountain West Conference
|endyear=2015
|}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 2013–14
| name = Utah State
| overall = 18–14
| conference = 7–11
| confstanding = T–8th
| championship =
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| season = 2014–15
| name = Utah State
| overall = 18–13
| conference = 11–7
| confstanding = T–4th
| championship =
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subtotal
| name = Utah State
| overall = 402–156 ({{winpct|402|156}})
| confrecord = 204–80 ({{winpct|204|80}})
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record End
|overall= 620–294 ({{winpct|620|294}})
}}
See also
References
{{reflist}}
{{navboxes|list=
{{Montana Grizzlies basketball coach navbox}}
{{Colorado State Rams men's basketball coach navbox}}
{{Utah State Aggies men's basketball coach navbox}}
{{Big Sky Conference Men's Basketball Coach of the Year navbox}}
{{Western Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Coach of the Year navbox}}
{{Big West Conference Men's Basketball Coach of the Year navbox}}
{{Jim Phelan Award}}
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morrill, Stew}}
Category:American Latter Day Saints
Category:American men's basketball coaches
Category:American men's basketball players
Category:Basketball coaches from Utah
Category:Brigham Young University–Idaho alumni
Category:College men's basketball head coaches in the United States
Category:Colorado State Rams men's basketball coaches
Category:Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball coaches
Category:Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball players
Category:Junior college men's basketball players in the United States
Category:Montana Grizzlies basketball coaches
Category:Basketball players from Provo, Utah