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Minneapolis (AP) —Last month Tanner Morgan lost his most intimate and biggest fan.
Minnesota’s fourth-year quarterback discovered a lot, as if he had doubts about the depth of their connection between both his coach and his teammates.
Morgan’s father, Ted, died of a brain tumor in July.
“This is what my dad wants me to do now. He wanted me to be ready to go to a training camp and excited to play football,” Morgan said. I said recently. “Everyone can talk about family, culture, or whatever it is because each team has different things. Ours are obviously very unique, but personal losses and individuals. When you experience it through a traditional ordeal, I think it really hits you deeply about how close it really is. “
Morgan’s grit, leadership, and maturity at high school in Kentucky take him to Minnesota after Gophers coach PJ Freck first hired him in West Michigan and took up the job in 2017. I persuaded him to do so.
Morgan’s 14-month treatment of the ups and downs of his father’s illness only solidified the praise that existed in him in this close program until his death.
As Freck declared, Ted Morgan was the father of “almost everyone” on the team. Chris Automan Bell, a wide receiver, said: A wonderful person. “
About a year ago, he was delighted to receive a package from Minnesota when Ted Morgan’s recovery from surgery and the fight against illness went relatively smoothly. Encouragement handwritten note card From over 100 Gophers coaches and players.
“I’ve never seen a member of the family die and the team as sad as Tanner’s dad. I think that’s an indication of Tanner’s impact,” Freck said.
Morgan learned a lot of football from his father, but the lessons of life and faith had the greatest impact.Their devout and humble Christian beliefs were evident in the moving compliments Morgan. Post to social media When his dad died — and it’s still clear. When Morgan spoke to reporters at the beginning of the pre-season camp about overcoming grief, he quoted gratitude to God, his family, his teammates, and college.
“It brings me joy through this and lets me through,” he said.
Morgan is 18-8 as a starter and is ranked in the top 10 in most passing categories on the program’s full-time list. He had plenty of opportunities to move up the rankings in seasons like the 11-2 record posted by Gophers in 2019, not like the 3-4 mark that the pandemic had during the changed schedule. is not.
Morgan, who was named the All Big Ten second team in 2019, said last week that this summer’s practice was more enjoyable than at any other point in his career.
He’s not a scrambled quarterback, but he focused on speeding up during off-season conditioning because he had to be agile on systems that used a lot of lampad option play. Morgan points to a sleep tracker worn on his wrist, looking for more awareness of general health and an additional edge that could be his last year in college.
If the Gophers had a legitimate chance of defeating a team like Ohio State University, this year Morgan would be behind an experienced attack line and Moibrahim would be the pre-season Associated Press All-America Second. -Team Pick — When running back next to him. The Gophers will host the season on Thursday night, hosting the 4th place Birth of the Eyes.
“He’s a great guy, an elite leader, and he got better in the off-season,” Freck said. “He has that competitiveness and the competitiveness he wants to see in every area of his life, which needs to affect our entire team. His I’m proud of my progress, both inside and outside the field. “
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