Alabama Baseball Hires Hunter Morris as Assistant Coach

Morris previously served as assistant coach of UT-Martin, where he was able to recruit at a high level as well as improve the team's power hitting.

UT-Martin Athletics

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Alabama baseball has added Hunter Morris as an assistant coach, Crimson Tide coach Brad Bohannon announced on Friday morning.

Morris spent the last three seasons at UT-Martin as an assistant coach, where he worked with hitters and position players on top of assisting with recruiting.

“I am very excited to bring Hunter on-board with us to assist me with our position players,” Bohannon said. “Hunter’s experience being the SEC Freshman of the Year and SEC Player of the Year along with his six years playing professional baseball will be a tremendous asset in connecting with our players who aspire to reach the same goals. His character and demeanor will fit in really well with our current staff."

Welcome to Tuscaloosa, @HunterMorris15 https://t.co/vWCFzPzHKt#RollTide pic.twitter.com/b4X2PBwUfy

— Alabama Baseball (@AlabamaBSB) July 23, 2021

As a recruiter in 2020 for the Skyhawks, Morris helped bring in a duo of Collegiate Baseball News All-Americans in Christian Hall and Wil LaFollette. Hall was named the Ohio Valley Conference's Best Freshman by D1Baseball.com.

On top of his impressive recruiting resume, Morris also helped boost UT-Martin's hitting game. In 2019, the team produced the third-most home runs in a single season in program history with 48. In the COVID-shortened 2020 season, the team hit 14 long balls in 16 games and was on track to break their previous season's record prior to the season's cancellation.

In 2021, the Skyhawks crushed 58 home runs — the second-most in a single season in program history.

Morris graduated from Grissom High School in Huntsville, Alabama in 2007 and was selected by the Boston Red Sox in the second round of the MLB Draft. After passing up the opportunity to play professional baseball, Morris attended Auburn University and was named the 2008 SEC Freshman of the Year and eventually the 2019 SEC Player of the Year.

While at Auburn, Morris earned himself a spot in the top-10 in Tigers program history of seven single-season categories and holds the team's record for home runs (23) and total bases (202). He was named a Freshman All-American in 2008 and was selected for the USA National Team the year prior. In 2010, he was named an All-American once again.

Following the 2010 season, Morris was drafted in the fourth round of the MLB Draft by the Milwaukee Brewers. He spent five season with the Brewers until he was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2015, where he ended his professional career. He then returned to Auburn in 2017 and completed his degree along with serving as a student assistant coach for the Tigers.

Prior to his time with UT-Martin, Morris served as a volunteer assistant at Samford during 2018, where he helped guide the program to the NCAA Tallahassee Regional. While with the Bulldogs in Birmingham, he oversaw three MLB Draft selections and two 2018 All-Southern Conference players.

“I really appreciate Hunter, his wife Macie, and his children Tripp, Charlotte and Ellie Kate, for believing in us and the direction of our program,” Bohannon said. “I can’t wait to get to work with Hunter and our players this Fall.”