Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community

Syracuse All-time Leading Rusher Joe Morris Named ACC Football Legend

Wednesday, October 23, 2019, By News Staff
Share
ACCAwardsSports

School rushing king Joe Morris has been selected as Syracuse University’s representative in the 2019 ACC Football Legends Class, the Atlantic Coast Conference announced on Wednesday, Oct. 23.

Honored football player greets fans

A member of Syracuse’s All-Century Team, Morris’ No. 47 jersey was retired by the University in 2018.

Morris will join 13 other greats as honorees during the ACC Night of Legends at the Charlotte Convention Center on Friday, Dec. 6. The class will also be recognized during the on-field, pregame festivities at the 15th annual Dr Pepper ACC Football Championship Game set for Saturday, Dec. 7 at Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium.

A four-year starter at running back for the Orange from 1978-81, Morris logged 813 carries for a team-record 4,299 yards (5.3 avg.) and 25 touchdowns. He also excelled as a kick returner, running back 40 kickoffs for 1,004 yards (25.1 avg.) and two scores.

Overall, Morris holds outright or shares 16 Syracuse records, including the single-game (252 vs. Kansas, 1979), single-season (1,372 in 1979) and career rushing yardage marks. Additionally, he is the program’s all-time leader in rushing yards per game (113.1), 100-yard games (22) and all-purpose yards (5,581).

The Ayers, Massachusetts, native posted three 1,000-yard rushing seasons, including his rookie year of 1978 when he became the only freshman in team history to reach the milestone. Morris finished the campaign with 1,001 yards and was named ECAC Rookie of the Year.

The next season, Morris authored the finest one-year rushing performance in Syracuse history. He ran for a school-record 1,372 yards and seven touchdowns on 238 carries (5.7 avg.). He also led the Orange to their first bowl victory in 18 years, closing the season with 155 yards to propel the Orange to a 31-7 triumph over McNeese State in the 1979 Independence Bowl.

Morris’s list of collegiate honors includes All-America certificates in 1979 and 1981, and the 1980 ECAC Offensive Player of the Year Award, an honor he shared with Yale’s Rich Diana, despite playing only six games because of injury.

Following his Orange career, Morris was selected by the New York Giants in the second round of the 1982 NFL Draft. He spent eight seasons (1982-88, 1991) in the NFL, including seven in New York. While with the Giants, Morris set franchise career rushing record with 5,296 yards (since broken). He was a two-time Pro Bowl selection and helped the team win its first Super Bowl title in 1986.

A member of Syracuse’s All-Century Team, Morris’ No. 47 jersey was retired by the school in 2018.

Previous Orange standouts to be honored as ACC Football Legends include Floyd Little (2013), Art Monk (2014), Chris Gedney (2015), Tom Coughlin (2017) and Don McPherson (2018).

2019 ACC Football Legends Class
Joe Nash (1978-81), Boston College, DL

Brian Dawkins (1992-95), Clemson, FS

Christopher Port (1986-89), Duke, OT

Ron Sellers (1966-68), Florida State, FL

Derrick Morgan (2007-09), Georgia Tech, LB

Deion Branch (2000-01), Louisville, WR

Bernie Kosar (1983-84), Miami, QB

Julius Peppers (1998-2000), North Carolina, LB

Nate Irving (2006-10), NC State, LB

Rickey Jackson (1977-80), Pittsburgh, LB

Joe Morris (1978-81), Syracuse, RB

Don Majkowski (1984-86), Virginia, QB

DeAngelo Hall (2001-03), Virginia Tech, CB

Bob McCreary (1958-60), Wake Forest, OT/DT

  • Author

News Staff

  • Recent
  • iSchool Student Selected for Highly Competitive Data Librarianship Internship
    Wednesday, September 27, 2023, By Anya Woods
  • Exploring the Existence of Life at 125 Degrees Fahrenheit
    Tuesday, September 26, 2023, By Dan Bernardi
  • How Climate Warming Could Disrupt a Deep-Rooted Relationship
    Tuesday, September 26, 2023, By Dan Bernardi
  • College of Visual and Performing Arts Welcomes New Full-Time Faculty
    Monday, September 25, 2023, By Erica Blust
  • Academic Strategic Plan Launch Symposium Set for Sept. 26
    Monday, September 25, 2023, By Wendy S. Loughlin

More In Campus & Community

‘Leading With Distinction’: Academic Strategic Plan Officially Launches at Tuesday’s Symposium (Video)

More than 400 members of the University community gathered in person and online yesterday for the official launch of “Leading With Distinction,” Syracuse’s new academic strategic plan. The launch of the plan follows more than a year of collaborative and…

Be Proactive: How to Keep Yourself Safe on Campus

While the chances of you becoming the victim of a crime during your time at Syracuse are low, it is still important to know what steps you can take to keep yourself and your belongings safe. We have teamed up…

College of Visual and Performing Arts Welcomes New Full-Time Faculty

Sixteen new full-time faculty joined the College of Visual and Performing Arts (VPA) for the 2023-24 academic year. Two of the faculty members are also new department chairs in the college. Gregg Barron, assistant teaching professor of music industry in…

Academic Strategic Plan Launch Symposium Set for Sept. 26

Following a yearlong planning and development process involving hundreds of members of the campus community, “Leading With Distinction,” Syracuse University’s new academic strategic plan, was unveiled earlier this month. A launch symposium will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 26, from…

Water Main Break Near Bird Library to Be Repaired Monday

After a water main break occurred near Bird Library Sunday afternoon, construction efforts to resolve the issue will start around 6 a.m. Monday. While no buildings will be impacted by the efforts to repair the break, there will be both construction…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • X
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • @SUCampus
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2023 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.