The beginning of fall is an exciting time of year as kids settle back into school; the leaves turn bright red and gold, and fall sports begin, including high school football. Last year, the Wasatch Football team said goodbye to Coach Steve Coburn. Coburn spent the final 12 years of his remarkable football career at Wasatch High, managing the opportunities and challenges that come with an expanding enrollment; taking WHS from a 3A to a 4A, then a 5A, and now an almost 6A school. Coburn brought consistency and experience at crucial times to the football program and community, and now he is passing the ball to Coach Jody Morgan. Coach Morgan looks forward to continuing the traditions set before him with enthusiasm while making his unique mark on Heber Valley.
Jody Morgan is a Utah native from the Salt Lake Valley. He grew up tagging along with his dad who was also a head football coach. Schools, practice fields, and stadiums are home to him. Morgan played for his dad at West Jordan High School. He played collegiate ball at Dixie State (now Utah Tech) and was an assistant coach there for four years. He also had the privilege of participating in NFL summer camp internships for the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs. One thing he learned while rubbing shoulders with professional athletes was that for most, their fondest memories are from high school. Morgan agrees, “There’s something unique about high school football. I like high school football because you’re growing up with kids that you’ve known your entire life, and the bonds there are just a little bit different than people that you meet in college and maybe even in your professional world. Not that those relationships can’t be fulfilling, but I feel like the relationships you’ve had your whole life are different. They’ve seen you when you were a teenager. When you see somebody’s scars and you share these moments when everything was a little bit simpler, I feel like that’s what high school’s like. It’s your school.”
His first high school coaching job was offensive coordinator at Herriman High School for three years, during which they won a state championship. He went on to be the head coach at Riverton High School. During his five years there, they won a region championship. After taking a step back for a year, he was right back at it for Herriman as an assistant, keeping his eyes and ears open for the next best fit for him as a head coach. As a newlywed, Morgan told his wife, Bree, that he had a list of five places he would love to coach if the opportunity became available. At the very top of his list was Wasatch High School. Lucky for him, Coach Steve Coburn announced his retirement. Touchdown! Jody and Bree moved their two daughters, ages three and six months, to the Heber Valley.
Like many others, he is drawn to this valley because of its location, beauty, goodness of the people, and community connections. He shares, “Go out and stand on our practice field. How could you have a bad attitude being out on our practice field just taking a look around? People have been nothing but supportive and nice. Being at Wasatch High School you’re in Wasatch County [sic]. It’s all connected in some way, which again makes it so cool and so fun. What better place to raise your kids? [You can’t] give me a better spot in Utah that provides the community support.”
Even though the Heber Valley continues to see exponential growth, Morgan appreciates the not-too-big-not-too-small feeling that still exists. He continues, “In the Valley [Salt Lake and Utah County] it’s sad to say, but kids kind of play wherever they want. Up here, we win or lose with our boys. I just think that’s really unique and cool. It’s a challenge at times, but I would rather have something be challenging and accomplish it than be easy and be comprised of a bunch of players that aren’t from that area. I like to think of it as recruiting our kids. Even if there is another school; that’s only two schools. It’s just a very special place, special valley. Even when the new school is built, I think that our valley is still going to be like these are our boys. Kids might go back and forth but they’ll still be known as the two schools from Heber. They’ll just be Heber kids, and I think that’s what’s unique about this place.”
Morgan acknowledges the legacy and values Coburn and other past coaches have set for Wasatch Football. Learning the same lessons from various people and coaches is a good thing. He wants players to understand that expectations are set by standards. These things aren’t unique to him; it’s what he’s seen other successful programs do. The three standards he wants the boys to define themselves by are attitude, response, and effort. “If we get them used to establishing things that we know are going to be beneficial for us no matter what, the score is going to take care of itself,” he explains. He also doesn’t take anything for granted as a coach, “Expectations are sometimes external. There are a lot of factors that play into expectations, which can be dangerous, because once you start expecting something and then you don’t get it […] that kind of ruins your attitude a little bit.” Morgan continues, “I tell the kids before we can have expectations, we need to have standards. Standards for this program, going forward, include showing up with a good attitude — and that means coaches too — and responding to success and adversity the same. If we go out there and we have a lot of success, are we going to get complacent, if we go out there and we are not getting what we wanted or not seeing the successes we thought we would earn, what is our response to that? Are we always giving whatever max effort we can get that day?” Morgan also believes that “[…] it’s a good thing for kids to learn that you may not be at your full potential right now, but I need whatever your max is today. If you need to communicate, this is what’s going on, we need to have that conversation, but I expect your best when you show up. Other standards we’re putting into place [include] leaving places better than you found them. If kids can communicate properly, be on time, have the right attitude, respond, and put in good effort, we’re going to go to all the right places.”
The number one thing he wants the players to know is, “…that they’re supported and loved by their community, their coaches, their administration, and their school; no matter what happens, we’re in support of our boys. I don’t feel like there’s ever a time when adversity is hitting more.” The number one focus he hopes the community will hear and see is that the program is, “…being positive and encouraging, I hope that’s what the community can see from us as coaches and from players. No matter what’s going on, we’re being positive. I feel like being positive all the time is a habit, it’s not something that just happens all the time.”
Morgan was inspired by a group of Wasatch football players from long ago who showed great courage despite devastating circumstances. Wasatch Football has never won a state championship, although they have played in the finals a few times throughout the years. After Morgan was hired, he met with Superintendent Paul Sweat, who told him about the extraordinary football team who were the undefeated region champions in 1942. They were led by new head coach Floyd Slater and comprised of eleven seniors: Pat O’Toole, Russell Grouse, Roy Smith, Andrew Lundin, Bob Wallis, Vern Mahoney, Dean Moulton, Kay Jones, Kent Buehler, Eugene Probst, and Clayton Sonderegger. Being undefeated, the team and community had high hopes for them to win state. The United States had entered WW2 just months after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, on December 7, 1941. The country was in the midst of sacrificing lives and rationing supplies and goods to help the war effort. Because resources were scarce, all high school playoffs and championships were eventually canceled. All eleven boys either enlisted or were drafted into the military. Paul Sweat shared this story at the commencement exercises for the WHS’s class of 2020 on YouTube.
One of Coach Morgan’s traditions is to organize his football players into squads with squad leaders. They are comprised of freshmen through seniors to look after each other, have different duties, and work together at various events. He usually lets them pick their names, but this year he’s decided to have twelve squads named after the 1942 football team who epitomize Morgan’s standards of attitude, response, and effort.
With inspiration and tradition at his side, experience and education behind him, and opportunities and possibilities ahead, Coach Jody Morgan has a playbook ready to lead his first team of Wasatch football players. Go Wasatch!
