Jim Morris

Morris was born in Brownwood, Texas, but spent most of his childhood moving to different cities, as his father was in the Navy. Throughout his childhood, Morris lived in New Haven, Connecticut, Great Lakes, Illinois, and Jacksonville, Florida. He began playing baseball at the age of three. His father, Jim Sr., became a recruiter for the United States Navy. His father and mother, Olline, settled in Brownwood, Texas. He attended Brownwood High School, but as Brownwood did not yet have a baseball program, he played football for the Lions from 1979–82 and won the state championship as a wingback, punter and kicker with Gordon Wood as a head coach. Still, he never gave up on his dreams of becoming a professional baseball player.\n', ' Morris was originally selected 466th overall in the January 1982 amateur baseball draft by the New York Yankees but did not sign. He would then later be selected fourth overall of the 1983 amateur draft (January Secondary) draft by the Milwaukee Brewers and signed with the organization. He suffered several arm injuries in the minor leagues, and was released during the 1987 season, never having progressed past the single-A minor leagues. He signed with the Chicago White Sox organization for 1989, but was again unable to rise past the single-A leagues.\n', ' Unable to make anything of his career, Morris retired to become a high school physical science teacher and baseball coach at Reagan County High School in Big Lake, Texas, with his wife Lorri, his 9-year-old son and his five- and one-year-old daughters.\n', '