Chiefs’ Mahomes talks UNT head coach, Eric Morris
Patrick Mahomes doesn’t hand out praise lightly. When the three-time Super Bowl champion recently spoke about Eric Morris, now head coach at North Texas, he made it clear why the Mean Green boss is one of the best quarterback developers in football.
“He has a good feel for making you comfortable,” Mahomes said. “He gives you confidence to go out there and be yourself… and he’ll change the offense for that. It’s not surprising to me he’s had a ton of success.”
Morris was Texas Tech’s offensive coordinator from 2014–2016, the three years Mahomes played for the Red Raiders. The results were historic:
• 2014 (redshirt freshman): 1,547 yards, 16 TD, 4 INT in limited action
• 2015 (sophomore): 4,653 passing + 456 rushing = 5,109 total yards (1st in FBS)
• 2016 (junior): 5,052 passing + 819 total yards vs. Oklahoma (still FBS single-game record)
Under Morris, Texas Tech led the nation in total offense twice and scoring once, averaging over 43 points per game despite porous defenses. Mahomes threw for 93 touchdowns and ran for 22 more while becoming the only quarterback in FBS history with consecutive 5,000-yard passing/500-yard rushing seasons.
Morris’s Air Raid wasn’t rigid, he built it around Mahomes’ arm talent and improvisational genius. No-look passes, cross-body throws, and designed runs became weekly highlights. The 734-yard passing explosion against Oklahoma in 2016 and the 776 total yards (515 pass, 261 rush) against Iowa State remain untouchable benchmarks.
That freedom is exactly what Mahomes credits today. Morris didn’t force a system on his quarterback; he let Mahomes play “the way you’re supposed to play.”
Now at North Texas, Morris is doing it again. In just his second season (2024), UNT went 7-6 and won the New Orleans Bowl, the program’s first bowl victory since 1946. Quarterbacks keep thriving under him because the philosophy never changed. See the talent, build confidence, and get out of the way.
As Mahomes continues to redefine the NFL, he knows exactly where it started. Eric Morris didn’t just coach him, he let a generational talent be himself. And that, more than any playbook, is why both men keep winning. Oklahoma State would be blessed to have Eric Morris reform this Cowboys team.