After 17 seasons and nearly 400 wins at the helm of the Utah State University’s men’s basketball program, Stew Morrill will retire as head coach of the Aggies. Morrill made the official announcement during an emotional press conference on Friday. The coach, beloved by many USU alumni and fans, will stay on until the end of the season.
With speculation about the timing of the announcement, Morrill made it clear that the decision was his alone. His tenure as head coach as USU, which spanned nearly two decades, has been a great experience, he said.
“I want you to know, I want the media to know — and I know they’ll be all kinds of speculation, that’s the nature of this — this is my decision,” Morrill said. “I had a few years left on a contract and it’s just time. Who gets to stay 17 years anymore in one place? I mean, what a wonderful thing for me and for my family!”
Morrill has won 13 regular season and tournament conference titles since being hired by USU in 1998. He is proud of the legacy that he will leave, he said.
“We ran a basketball program the right way, in my mind. I’ve got peace with that,” Morrill said. “We graduated our players at a high level. We didn’t cheat, we didn’t do that. We didn’t break NCAA rules and we won enough games to keep working. I’m proud of that.”
Morrill made it clear that he will finish out the season as coach of the Aggies, wherever that takes the team.
“I reassured our players, if I was just wanting to be done and quit on them, I’d have been done today,” he said. “I don’t want to do that. I want to do it right. I want to finish the season and see what we can do and see where we can go.”
In 29 years as a head coach in college basketball, Morrill has amassed over 600 wins with the University of Montana, Colorado State University, and Utah State.
