Virginia State University Trojans coach Merrill Morgan has compiled over 100 wins and has guided VSU to four Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) championships, including three consecutive championships. Morgan is a 1986 graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University, and batted .308 in Rams baseball his junior season.While high school baseball has ended, American Legion baseball has only just begun within the Tri-Cities for the Colonial Heights (Virginia) Post 284 Bucs and Pirates teams. For fourth-year Post 284 Bucs coach Merrill Morgan, also the head baseball coach at Virginia State University, he is excited to get going. "I just like helping young players develop. I love baseball and working with young players improve for college," Morgan said. "I get a chance to watch and follow many of the players because I coach at Virginia State and live within the area."
As a Dinwiddie native, both of Morgan's sons, M.L. (Merrill,Jr.) Morgan and Marcus have gone to play collegiate baseball. M.L. is currently on the Virginia Commonwealth baseball team and also graduated from Dinwiddie High School while Marcus went to VSU. Both sons last year coached with Morgan during the American Legion season and this year M.L. will join him again.
While at Virginia State, Morgan has coached six seasons - leading the Trojans to over 100 wins with four Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) championships, including three straight titles. He has also been named CIAA baseball coach of the year three times (2004, 2006 and 2007). Because of the good relationships that the Morgan family has developed over the years within the local community, it has only made the teams under the fourth-year coach that much closer.
"The kids that we get are pretty polished. All we try to do is give them the guidance and confidence to play college ball," Morgan said. "They already come from good programs so that experience certainly helps."
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