Southern Boone’s Chase Morris uses three-sport skills to lift teams on, off field
Chase Morris is doing something rare and is pretty good at it. Months ago, he scored touchdowns for Southern Boone on the football field. Now that’s transferred to scoring buckets on the basketball court. He'll soon be doing work on the infield for the baseball team.
Southern Boone basketball coach Andy Jahnsen mentions that it’s hard to find three-sport athletes; luckily for him, football coach Mark Ross and baseball coach Brian Ash all get to experience what Morris is able to contribute.
“He excels on all three,” Jahnsen said. “I mean, he had a phenomenal football career. He signed at Lincoln to play football and baseball you know; baseball is a great sport for him as well.”
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While he is headed to Jefferson City this fall to play football and baseball for the Division II Blue Tigers, basketball has always been his favorite sport.
“I started walking with a basketball. Basketball has been my favorite sport,” Morris said. “Unfortunately, I’m 5-foot-8, not tall enough, but I never let that stop me from pursuing my dreams as a basketball player and I’ll never forget basketball and what it's done for me as a person and made me a better person.”
The Golden State Warriors are his favorite NBA team because their star player defied the odds to get where he is today.
“Steph Curry is my favorite player just because he’s undersized,” Morris said. “He can shoot it. I’ve always grown up and seen him play. I’ve been there a couple of his games so it’s always fun to see people succeed at what they do best.”
As an undersized player, Morris mentioned that he’s always had a chip on his shoulder that has helped fuel his motivation. It hasn’t stopped him from being a three-sport athlete, as he's played them all since the first grade.
“It’s tough, there’s never a break, and going to college to play two it’s going to be even tougher, but you never get a break,” Morris said. "You’re always on your grind, and your body is dead, but you just got to keep recovering."
While basketball is the main focus now for Morris, preparing for his collegiate days is already part of his training routine.
“I’m just trying to get better every day on and off the court,” Morris said. “Even though it’s basketball season, I’m still working on football and baseball for Lincoln because basketball is my main priority right now but I still got to work out for those sports for Lincoln and college.”
Due to his dominance on the baseball diamond and football field, Jahnsen notes that basketball may not be his best sport. Yet the game is extremely important to him all year round.
A leader on and off the court
Southern Boone is one of the younger teams in Boone County, with just three seniors, one of them being Morris. Jahnsen is proud of the way he has helped step up to be a leader.
It starts with his gritty and scrappy play on the defensive end, which carries over to the rest of his game. Morris plays fearlessly on the offensive as a slashing guard, not afraid to attack the rim while also being a competent 3-point shooter.
“Chase is just a competitor. I mean, a little bitty guy, but man, nobody plays harder than him on both ends of the floor,” Jahnsen said. “He brings an energy that in 21 years I don’t get to see very often so he’s just a hard-nosed kid that competes.”
His leadership isn’t just confined to 32 minutes on the hardwood.
“I try to lead in the classroom and on the court, but I get my teammates involved in everything,” Morris said. “Just like the little things, trying to hang out with them all the time, like trying to get like movie nights, team dinner, just trying to make it become like more of a family bond and trying to get us closer so we really know each other.”
Big Aspirations
Southern Boone (19-4) has experienced one of its best seasons in the past five years. The team wrapped an 11-game win streak around the holidays and, after falling to Battle on Feb. 3, the Eagles are on a four-game win streak, defeating Osage, rival Hallsville, and a 19-5 Fatima team that Morris hadn’t beaten in his high school basketball career.
The February surge has it positioned for a conference title as it heads to Booneville on Friday.
“We haven’t won the conference in basketball since 2016," Morris said. "I think that’s the last time it was, so that’s a really big goal for us.”
His message to players like him is simple as it entails them never giving up on what they want to pursue.
“They told me I couldn’t make it where I was going, and now I’m at Division II being a 5-foot-8 wide receiver at Lincoln University, so anything’s possible,” Morris said. “Just keep pursuing your dreams and don’t let anybody tell you what you can and can’t do.”
This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Chase Morris' stature doesn't matter as a leader at Southern Boone
