Skip to main content
tennessee logo

What Rick Barnes said about new Tennessee Basketball assistant coach Amorrow Morgan

IMG_3593by:Grant Ramey•05/02/25•

GrantRamey

Rick Barnes, Tennessee Basketball | Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images
(Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images) Jan 7, 2025; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Tennessee Volunteers head coach Rick Barnes looks on against the Florida Gators during the first half at Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center.

Tennessee Basketball announced the hiring of Amorrow Morgan as its new assistant coach on Friday afternoon. Morgan replaces Rod Clark, who left to join Darian DeVries’ staff at Indiana. 

Morgan is a Memphis native who spent the last two seasons at Cal. He comes to Tennessee from Florida State, where he accepted a job on the FSU staff in early April.

“I am thrilled to welcome Amorrow to Rocky Top,” Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said in a press release announcing the hiring. “As soon as we knew we had a decision to make, it was immediately clear Amorrow would be our first choice.”

It was reported on Wednesday afternoon that Clark, who spent the last four years with the Vols, would be leaving for Indiana. Barnes told reporters later that night at the Big Orange Caravan stop in Nashville that the new opening on his coaching staff was “pretty much filled.” 

Amorrow Morgan gives Tennessee ‘a young, energetic coach with a sharp basketball mind’

It didn’t take long for Morgan to officially fill the position.

“He is a young, energetic coach,” Barnes said, “with a sharp basketball mind who will make an impact with our program from day one. I know he will do all he can to help our players excel and that he will mesh with the strong culture we have in place.”

Morgan recruited Jeremiah Wilkinson, a three-star point guard from Powder Springs, Ga., to Cal and helped turn him into the ACC’s Sixth Man of the Year and an All-Rookie Team pick in the league after averaging 15.1 points per game last season. 

Before Cal, Morgan coached two seasons at Loyola-Chicago and three seasons at South Alabama. He made other previous stops at Nicholls State, Henderson State, the University of Illinois Springfield and Our Lady of the Lake University. 

‘I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity to return to my home state’

Morgan is a 2012 graduate of Idaho State, where he was a two-time All-Big Sky guard and a three-time team captain. He played professionally for three years in Europe and earned his master’s degree at Illinois-Springfield. 

“Coach Barnes has built something truly special on Rocky Top,” Morgan said in a statement. “Tennessee Basketball is a program rooted in tradition and rising with purpose. 

“I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity to return to my home state and look forward to contributing however I can to the continued success of Volunteer basketball. I cannot wait to start and get to work with our guys. Go Big Orange.”

You may also like