NFL Coach, Irvington Native Raheem Morris Honored In Essex County

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — When you tune into an Atlanta Falcons game next year, there’s a good reason to cheer if you’re from Essex County: the team’s head coach, Raheem Morris.

Morris – an Irvington native – was honored with this year’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Leadership Award in Essex County. He received the award during the county’s annual African American History Month Celebration on Thursday.

At the event, local officials presented Morris with a key to the county and cities of Irvington and Newark, saying that he has inspired pride in his home city and beyond.

“Today is a celebration of me, but it’s really about the people who helped me and got to where I am,” Morris said. “Essex County really is a special place, and it was emotional for me to come back home where I was raised.”

Not a football fan? Here’s a recap of the Irvington native’s sports career, as per a statement from the county:

“Morris was named as the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons football team on January 25, becoming the first full-time Black coach in the team’s history. Earlier in his career, he served as interim head coach of the Falcons for 12 weeks in 2020. He has been to the Super Bowl three times, winning the championship in 2003 with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when he was a defensive assistant coach and in 2022 with the Los Angeles Rams when he was the Defensive Coordinator. He also was part of the Atlanta Falcons as an assistant head coach that lost the Super Bowl in 2017. During the previous three years, Morris was the Defensive Coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams. Before Los Angeles, he spent six seasons with the Falcons in various roles, including Assistant Head Coach, before assuming the interim position. He gained his first head coaching opportunity with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2009-2011 and, at the time, was the youngest head coach in the league at the age of 32.”

Morris was a safety on the Hofstra University football team from 1994 to 1997, and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in physical education.

After graduating from Hofstra, Morris held coaching positions with Hofstra, the New York Jets, Washington Redskins (now the Commanders), Kansas State University and Cornell University.

In tribute to Morris’ gridiron accomplishments, the football field in Essex County Vailsburg Park in Newark has been named as the “Essex County Raheem Morris Football Field.”

A plaque that will be installed at the site gives more details about Morris’ links to the area:

“As a youth growing up in Irvington, Raheem Morris excelled in football, baseball and basketball and was part of a Small Fry basketball team that traveled to Puerto Rico and won a national championship. After playing football at Hofstra University, Raheem pursued a career in coaching starting with his alma mater at Hofstra and progressing to the National Football League where he has been a head coach of two teams and part of two Super Bowl championships with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2003 and Los Angeles Rams in 2022. As a coach, he has taught, mentored and molded his players so they are great on and off the field. Personally, he has supported charitable organizations that fight against cancer and childhood diseases, advocates about the importance of learning CPR and helped save a 3-year-old from drowning in a pool. At a time when there are few Black head coaches in the NFL, Raheem is a role model, demonstrating to younger generations that through hard work they can achieve their goals. Naming the ‘Raheem Morris Football Field’ in his honor will hopefully inspire our younger generations to do the same.”

A high-profile roster of local officials and community members were present at Thursday’s ceremony, including Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way, Senate Majority Leader Teresa Ruiz, Essex County Commissioner President Carlos Pomares, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, Irvington Mayor Tony Vauss, Newark Councilman Dupre Kelly and Irvington Schools Superintendent April Vauss.

In addition, the Irvington High School football team was on hand to present a framed retired team jersey, and members of the Payne Tech and Newark Tech girls flag football team presented a team jersey.

Morris’ high school coach Chet Parlavecchio and youth football coach Mark Vitelli were also present to offer their congratulations.

Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo Jr. recalled the first time he met Morris, when he was playing basketball in the county’s Small Fry program – en route to a national championship.

“After college, Raheem pursued a career as a football coach and has broken barriers in the NFL,” DiVincenzo said. “He became one of the youngest head coaches when he led the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the first Black coach of the Atlanta Falcons.”

“His perseverance and determination in the highly competitive NFL is something our younger generations can look to for inspiration,” DiVincenzo added.

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