Coach Jonathan Morgan observes from the sideline during the Terps’ 1-0 loss against Wisconsin on Oct. 24 at Ludwig Field.
The University of Maryland athletic department announced Terrapins women’s soccer coach Jonathan Morgan’s resignation Tuesday evening in a news release.
The fourth-year coach was asked to resign Monday, Morgan said.
Morgan said he met with Athletic Director Kevin Anderson and Senior Assistant Athletic Director Marcus Wilson in Anderson’s office, where the pair asked the fourth-year coach to leave the program.
“I was surprised,” Morgan said. “I was really disappointed. A lot of time and investment has gone into the program and the girls. The past two seasons have been disappointing. I obviously wanted a chance to move forward and turn this thing around.”
In four years as the Terps head coach, Morgan held a 35-36-9 record. The Terps tied for last place in the Big Ten this season with a 6-12-1 overall mark and a 1-9-1 conference record despite 10 seniors on the roster. For the second straight year, Morgan’s squad missed out on the Big Ten tournament, which eight of the 14 conference schools qualify for.
In 2012, Morgan led the Terps to a 14-7-2 mark and a berth to the second round of the NCAA tournament. Since then, however, the Terps haven’t finished with a winning record, nor have they qualified for the NCAA tournament.
Morgan, who served as an assistant coach for the Terps from 2007-2011 before being promoted, told The Diamondback on Oct. 29 that he wasn’t concerned about his job security. Morgan said he was excited about the recruiting classes he planned to bring in the next three years, since they were some of the most talented groups in the country.
“It’s always tough losing a coach, especially being your head coach,” said forward Alex Anthony, who led the Terps with 10 goals this season. “It kind of stunts the growth of your team, at least momentarily, just trying to get over the loss. Jon had big plans for the team. I’m hoping that the athletic department will bring in someone who also has big plans and wants to see us grow, develop and improve.”
The Terps ranked in the bottom three of the Big Ten in goals the past two years. Morgan and Anthony said one reason was the lack of healthy players in the attack and midfield.
“He did the best that he could to get production out of us,” Anthony said. “When it comes down to it, he’s not the one on the field playing. We are. We didn’t step up as a team. It’s really unfortunate it has to fall down on him. I’m really sorry about that.”
Forwards Gabby Galanti and Alexis Prior-Brown came to College Park as highly touted recruits and played a part in the Terps’ NCAA tournament run in 2012 as freshmen. Due to injuries the past three seasons, though, the two have seen limited time on the field.
Former Terps midfielder Olivia Wagner, who played from 2009 to 2012, said Morgan always had a good offensive game plan. In 2012, with the help of 25 combined goals from forwards Hayley Brock and Becky Kaplan, the Terps outscored their opponents, 45-24.
Morgan was an important piece in rebuilding the Terps program when he served as an assistant coach under Brian Pensky, Wagner said. While she’s not surprised Morgan was asked to resign due to the Terps’ record the past two seasons, Wagner said Morgan was a great coach.
“Sometimes you just have years where you don’t have a person like Hayley Brock or Becky Kaplan who are consistently putting in game-winners or just scoring goals every single game,” Wagner said. “That’s pretty hard to come by. We were pretty lucky [in 2012] that we did have that, and we were able to pull out big games because we had that extra push. I wouldn’t say [the offense’s recent struggles] has anything to do with his coaching.”
Wagner said she talked with teammates from her graduating class, including Brock, who were disappointed to hear Morgan was asked to resign. Though Anthony said the Terps will miss Morgan, she said her teammates won’t lose motivation under a new coach.
“Jon kind of puts his whole life into coaching,” Wagner said. “He put everything into the program. You got to win, and you got to win in a big conference. That’s kind of the bottom line.”
Morgan said he’s received interest from schools “at the level of Maryland” as an assistant coach, and he’ll make a decision after taking time off from coaching.
“Just coaching in general and working with these young women was pretty fantastic,” Morgan said. “Game day at Maryland was always something super exciting. College Park was a really cool place to work. It really hurts.”
