NC State football names MJ Morris starting quarterback
NC State will have a new quarterback this week. After graduate student Brennan Armstrong posted the lowest QBR in the ACC (13.7) in the Wolfpack’s loss to Louisville, coach Dave Doeren tabbed sophomore MJ Morris as the team’s starter against Marshall Monday afternoon.
“It’s clear that we need a spark on that side of the ball, and MJ Morris is going to takeover as our starting quarterback,” Doeren said. “He is ready to lead the offense. … It was my plan and our plan to redshirt MJ and allow him an opportunity to develop behind Brennan, but plans sometimes need to change, and the time is now.”
Armstrong was 94-of-160 passing for 971 yards with five touchdowns and six interceptions through the Wolfpack’s first five games of the 2023 campaign. He posted a QBR of 41.0 and a 66.8 offensive grade, according to Pro Football Focus, in his five starts as NC State’s signal-caller.
The Virginia transfer beat Morris in a preseason quarterback competition to earn the starting job. Armstrong helped lead the Wolfpack to wins over UConn, VMI and UVA, but struggled in the red and white’s loss to Louisville — 13-of-25 passing for 112 yards and two interceptions.
Before Doeren made the move at quarterback, NC State originally wanted to redshirt Morris this season so he would have three years of eligibility remaining — presumably to lead the Wolfpack for those seasons.
Wolfpack fans thought Morris should have played when Armstrong came out of the contest during the team’s rout of VMI, but Doeren cleared the air on that during his radio show on Sept. 20.
“We’re trying to redshirt him,” Doeren said of Morris. “If I get the opportunity to not play him, I’m not going to play him. … MJ doesn’t need mop up duty right now.”
But with NC State’s season in the balance, Doeren decided to play the talented right-handed quarterback. Morris’ start against the Thundering Herd won’t be his first with the Wolfpack — he appeared in five games last fall, three of which came while Devin Leary dealt with an injury.
During Morris’ five appearances with the Wolfpack last season, he threw for 648 yards and seven touchdowns on 52-of-86 passing. He came off the bench to lead NC State to a 22-21 win over Virginia Tech with three touchdown passes in the contest.
Morris also became the first true freshman to start for NC State when he earned the nod against Wake Forest last fall since Philip Rivers did it in 2000. He led the Wolfpack to a 30-21 win over the Demon Deacons with a three-touchdown day. Morris was injured against Boston College and missed the rest of the season. He earned the Wolfpack’s Philip Rivers Award for Most Valuable Freshman.
Morris was a three-star recruit in the class of 2022 out of Carrollton (Ga.) High School, according to the On3 Industry Rankings. He threw for 3,089 yards and 33 touchdowns in his senior season en route to the Georgia 6A state semifinals.
