Everyone Wants More Of Morris

TAMPA It was a coming out party of sorts. Raheem Morris stopped by the media center Wednesday and chatted with local and national media covering the Super Bowl.

We've gotten to know him around here, of course - first as the high-energy defensive backs coach of the Buccaneers, and now as their new head coach. This time, though, it was everybody's turn.

Morris dropped into "radio row" and did the rounds of talk shows. He took questions from reporters from the Associated Press and the New York Times. It was instructive for him to get a taste of what the spotlight will be like as Morris prepares to lead the Bucs.

It was also instructive for the national media to see the affable, high-energy man who takes over for Gruden.

Frankly, I thought he stumbled a bit and looked nervous in his initial news conference to announce his hiring. We'll cut him some slack on that one because the Gruden firing caught everyone by surprise, including the man who replaced him.

Besides, Morris looked much more relaxed and in command this time. He still didn't have a lot of specific answers about the direction of the club; he still answers questions about his offensive plans by saying "We want to score touchdowns."

Then again, since we haven't seen too many touchdowns around these parts lately, maybe that's more profound than we're grasping at the moment.

Youth Not A Negative

He is only 32 years old (we know that number by heart now) but youth is not a negative any more when hiring a head coach. That was a storyline here when Morris was first hired and the national media seemed interested in that as well.

Used to be you'd never think of giving someone so young and inexperienced a shot at the head job for another 10 years, but Morris isn't shy about admitting this is exactly what he wants to be.

"You never want to come across as a guy who said you knew it was going to happen," he said. "But you plan for it. You prepare for it if it does happen. You try to do everything you can to put yourself in position for it to happen."

Bucs co-chairman Bryan Glazer said earlier this week that fan discontent was a factor in Gruden's firing, so it follows that they believe Morris can repair some of that public relations damage.

"The head coach, whether you like it or not, you're the front porch of the community," Morris said. "There's nothing you can do about it; you can't dance around it. It's who you are. This is your job. Everybody's looking at you. You have to do the right things, and when you don't, you get emails about it.

"That's kind of how it goes. I don't know why the Glazers made the decision. Obviously Bryan told you that, so that's why they made the decision. My job is to be a community leader and that's what I plan to be."

What is the most interesting email he has received? He laughed.

"I don't want to talk about it."

Let Bates Be Bates

There were some other things. Morris was asked about his first major hire - Jim Bates, chosen to take over a defense led for years by Monte Kiffin.

Morris said he expects Bates to put his own stamp on the unit.

"It's got to be him. It's got to be his character," he said. "You can't ask that guy to duplicate another guy. He has to go out and do what he does best."

He was pressed. Will Bates blitz more? More pressure on the quarterback?

Don't know.

"That has a whole bunch of variations. We may go sign a top-notch rusher, so we wouldn't [blitz as much]," Morris said. "We may not sign a top-notch rusher so we'd have to cause pressure. All that stuff has plenty of time to figure out in the offseason, when the plan is in place. I'll let them do their jobs."

Maybe that's the best strategy of all right now. The Bucs have seven months until their next game. There is a roster to revamp, an offensive coordinator to hire, plans to implement. Those things take priority right now.

So toward the end of his media session, someone asked Morris about the outlook for his team. He smiled widely.

"I like my situation," he said. "I like my chances. Actually, I love my chances."