Why USC football commitment Daune Morris is primed for bigger second year at Oakland

Oakland senior running back and Southern California commitment Daune Morris is still a heavily recruited athlete.

Despite committing to the Trojans in April, Morris said he still has several coaches staying close to him. It's understandable in a day and age of transfers and athletes changing their mind.

But Morris is taking it all in stride.

"The offseason for me, after I committed, a lot more coaches have hit me up for the simple fact that they see I'm going so far out," Morris said. "But other than that, I'm still on my recruiting trail with my coach (USC running backs coach Anthony Jones Jr.) and still locked in to USC. But a lot of schools have been hitting me up as well."

The 5-foot-10, 180-pound Morris is No. 3 in The Tennessean's 2024 Dandy Dozen, a collection of the top college football recruits for the 2025 class as picked by the newspaper. Morris is ranked by 247Sports Composite as the No. 17 player in Tennessee and No. 29 athlete in the nation in the 2025 class.

He had a plethora of Power Five offers. That included SEC schools Tennessee, Auburn, Florida, Kentucky, Missouri, Ole Miss and Texas A&M, along with Deion Sanders' Colorado squad, Louisville and USC in his top 10.

Morris had a breakout junior season at Oakland, after transferring from Chattanooga Red Bank. That played abig part of those offers, as well as the continued attention he is getting from college coaches.

USC commitment Daune Morris ready for bigger second year at Oakland

Stability has set in for Morris at Oakland, a little over a year after he moved to Murfreesboro and settled in with a team that was coming off three consecutive Class 6A state championships.

He didn't take long to adjust last season, rushing for 2,012 yards, added 568 receiving yards and scored 36 total touchdowns in leading the Patriots (12-3) to a fourth straight trip to the state title game. He was a Tennessee Titans Mr. Football finalist in Class 6A.

But he is no longer the new guy that has to learn new plays, new teammates and new coaches.

"I feel like this year will be a lot faster on offense," Morris said. "I understand my keys and factors on the field more. It will be a lot more calm. I've been here a year and understand what we're doing. I plan on being as versatile as I was before, but I'll have a better understanding of the offense."

Morris' versatility on offense, playing anywhere from his primary running back position to wide receiver to behind center in the Wildcat, should increase even more in his second season.

"We play him at a lot of positions," Oakland coach Kevin Creasy said. "We threw a lot on him last year and he handled it well. But he should be even better this year. I do think another year in the system will make him more comfortable."

Morris is the lone Mr. Football finalist returning this year, but he has a bigger hunger that comes from a 24-9 loss to Houston in last year's Class 6A BlueCross Bowl.

"I wasn't with them the other (three) years, just the one," Morris said. "Just getting to the state championship game and understanding that the focus and the mental for it is much more brutal than anything else. It's not just getting to state. It's winning Week 1 and winning in the summer and understanding that we're here for a reason.

"(Winning) Mr. Football is not the say-all, be-all. It's understanding that we still have to win a state championship. As week by week come, I feel like (being in the Mr. Football conversation) will always play a part and will help me get there."

Cecil Joyce covers high school sports and MTSU athletics for The Daily News Journal. Contact him at cjoyce@dnj.com and follow him on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, @Cecil_Joyce.

This article originally appeared on Murfreesboro Daily News Journal: Why USC football commitment Daune Morris is primed for bigger second year at Oakland