Cal's Derek Morris Getting His Kicks After Tough College Debut

The freshman placekicker was 5 for 5 on field goals last week, bouncing back from a missed game-winner the week before

Derek Morris follows through on a kick as holder Lachlan Wilson looks on. / Photo by Al Sermeno

After the worst moment of his young football career, Derek Morris is alive and kicking.

In fact, the Cal freshman kicked five field goals in last Saturday’s 44-7 victory over Oregon State, tying a program record and earning Atlantic Coast Conference Specialist of the Week honors.

“It was a great feeling,” Morris said this week, “definitely great to bounce back from the week before.”

Morris made his college debut the week before against North Carolina State, taking over placekicking duties from senior transfer Ryan Coe. It went well for a while, with Morris converting field goals from 41, 26 and 24 yards, helping the Bears forge a 23-10 lead.

But with 1:34 left and the Bears now trailing 24-23, Morris lined up from the left hash for a 28-yard field goal that could put Cal in front. He pushed it wide right and the Wolfpack held on to win.

Reflecting on the moment a week-and-a-half later, Morris said “my nerves were a little bit higher than I would want them to be.” 

Eager to make the kick, Morris believes he was “too careful,” rather than staying relaxed and natural in his process. “Almost robotic,” he explains in the video at the top of this story.

“The lesson I learned and I continued on to this week is just go out there and swing with everything I have and trust I will be good enough to keep it consistent,” he said. “I don’t want to ever miss not giving it my all.”

It helped that his parents and sister were at the game, providing some friendly give and take afterward. He slept well enough that night but mostly avoided his phone. “I know social media is not my friend after things like that happen,” he said. "It was not the happiest of evenings.”

Morris said his teammates and coaches have been “super supportive,” especially former Cal and NFL kicker Ryan Longwell, brought onto the coaching staff this season as a senior analyst.

Ryan Longwell during his NFL days / Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Longwell played 16 seasons in the NFL for the Packers, Vikings and Seahawks, kicking 361 field goals.

“The funny thing is, his first game-winning kick (attempt) in the NFL was 28, left hash and he missed it,” Morris said. “That was a crazy coincidence that we had the same kick.”

Longwell told Morris he could either let the missed kick ruin him or he could “let this moment galvanize you so keeping going and use it as emphasis to keep getting better.”

Longwell took the latter path after his early disappointment. He told Morris he made his next 12 field goal tries during his rookie season of 1997.

“It was pretty nice to hear that and now having bounced back it adds confidence for me,” Morris said.

Longwell’s anecdote was mostly accurate. He actually made seven in a row, then had a 47-yard attempt blocked before hitting his next five. So, 12 in a row that had a chance.

During his recruitment to Cal from Franklin, Ohio, Morris found another connection to Longwell during a phone conversation. Both use a somewhat unusual two-step approach to kicking, rather than three steps utilized by most kickers.

“Having a mentor like him that lasted that long in the league and does the same exact thing as me, I want to strive to do what he did,” Morris said.

After the NC State game, Morris said the Bears did drills during the week in which teammates would scream at him while attempting a kick in an effort to simulate a pressure-type situation.

He said the exercise was beneficial and also credits his 5-for-5 success against OSU to the work of long snapper David Bird and holder Lachlan Wilson, who also serves as the Bears’ punter.

“That whole operation makes me feel comfortable and I can trust all of them that they’ll do their job so I can do mine,” he says in the video above. 

“It feels really good coming off that (OSU) game, It just builds up my confidence and allows me to keep going on with this season with a good mindset.”

Derek Morris watches one of his five field goals vs. OSU / Photo by Al Sermeno

Morris said he’d never made five field goals in a game. He kicked a 46-yarder against the Beavers, shy of his high school best of 52 yards. And although he said he once converted a 70-yarder at a kicking camp, Morris will handle all field goal tries from 48 yards in while Coe will be called on for longer kicks.

Now 8 for 9 on the season, Morris said he expects to convert above 90 percent of his kicks and sees no reason he can’t make all of them the rest of the season.

The Bears have a bye this week before playing at Wake Forest a week from Friday. Asked if he’s eager for another chance to deliver a game-winning kick, Morris said he knows the opportunity will come.

“That’s always in the back of my head because I always want to bounce back and prove that I can do it,” he said. “At the same time, I would want the team to blow Wake Forest out of the water. That’s the hope.”