| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1998-01-23)January 23, 1998 (age 28) St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Listed height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Listed weight | 235 lb (107 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Greenwood (Greenwood, Arkansas) |
| College | Arkansas (2016–2021) |
| NFL draft | 2022: undrafted |
| Position | Linebacker |
| Career history | |
Playing | |
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |
Coaching | |
| |
| Awards and highlights | |
| |
| Stats atPro Football Reference | |
Grant Morgan (born January 23, 1998) is an Americanfootball coach for theNew York Giants. He playedcollege football for theArkansas Razorbacks. Originally a preferredwalk-on with the team, he was placed on full scholarship in August 2018. He has since been named to multipleAll-America andAll-SEC teams, and has served as a team captain for the Razorbacks in2020 and2021. He has twice been named aBurlsworth Trophy finalist, and signed aName, Image and Likeness (NIL) deal with Walk-On's Bistreaux and Bar in August 2021. He has previously served as a coach for theIllinois Fighting Illini.
Grant Morgan, the son of Matt Morgan and Annie Shaw, was born inSt. Louis, Missouri,[1] on January 23, 1998.[2] He was a three-yearletterwinner atGreenwood High School, where he was rated the No. 22 prospect inArkansas and the No. 71 inside linebacker in his class by247Sports and given an overall three-star rating.[3] During his senior year, he was named Defensive Player of the Year by theArkansas Democrat-Gazette and Player of the Year by theSouthwest Times Record.[4] Greenwood made the second round of theAAA football playoffs in Morgan's junior year and went to the state championship in his senior year.[2]
Morgan accepted a position as a preferredwalk-on at Arkansas on January 18, 2016, one day after his unofficial visit to the campus.[4] He chose Arkansas over his other interests,Arkansas State,Auburn,Central Arkansas,Michigan,Missouri,Nebraska, andTulsa, though he did not receive offers from any of these schools.[5] Morgan formally enrolled at Arkansas on May 31, 2016.[3]
Afterredshirting during the2016 season, Morgan saw the field for the first time in2017. He appeared in all twelve of the Razorbacks' games, recording at least one tackle in each, and a season-high eight in the last game of the season againstMissouri.[2] On August 26, 2018, Morgan was placed on fullscholarship alongside two other Arkansas players.[6] In2018 and2019, Morgan again made appearances in every game for Arkansas, totaling 24 and 39 tackles, respectively, over the course of each season.[2] Prior to the2020 season, Morgan was voted one of four team captains by his teammates under new head coachSam Pittman,[7] and garnered nationwide recognition by the end of the season. He was named a second-team All-American by theWalter Camp Football Foundation[8] and theAmerican Football Coaches Association,[9] and earned third-team All-America honors from college football analystPhil Steele.[10] Morgan was also named first-team all-SEC by theAssociated Press[11] and SEC head coaches, the first Razorback to be named by both sinceMartrell Spaight in 2014.[2] On August 12, 2021, Arkansas announced that Morgan had signed aName, Image and Likeness (NIL) deal with Walk-On's Bistreaux and Bar.[12] As a senior, Morgan helped Arkansas to an 8–4 regular season, and a bid to the2022 Outback Bowl againstPenn State on New Year's Day. The Razorbacks went on to win the game, 24–10, finishing the 2021 season 9–4 and ranked in theTop 25.
In 2020, Morgan was named a finalist for theBurlsworth Trophy – which is given to the best national player who began their college career as a walk-on – alongsideDax Milne and eventual winnerJimmy Morrissey. Morgan was again named a finalist in 2021, alongsideCarlton Martial andStetson Bennett. The trophy ceremony was held at theCrystal Bridges Museum of American Art on December 6, and Morgan was announced as the winner.[13]
Morgan signed with theJacksonville Jaguars as an undrafted free agent on May 2, 2022.[14] He was waived on August 26 and re-signed to the practice squad.[15][16] He was released off the practice squad on September 12.[17]
In April 2023, Morgan joined theIllinois coaching staff as a graduate assistant.[18] The following season, he was the team's assistant linebackers coach.[19]
On January 30, 2025, theNew York Giants announced that they had hired Morgan to be a defensive assistant.[20]
Morgan is the second of seven siblings. He has an older brother – former Arkansas wide receiverDrew Morgan – in addition to four younger sisters and a younger brother.[2] Morgan graduated from theUniversity of Arkansas in 2019 with aBachelor of Science inkinesiology, and again in 2020 with aMaster of Science inoperations management.[2] On January 4, 2020, Morgan married his longtime girlfriend, Sydnie, anArkansas Tech softball player.[21][22]