Penn Hills School District hires alum Charles Morris as head football coach

Community, family and character were arguments for both sides of the Penn Hills head football coach debate at a special school board meeting on Monday, where the board approved the hiring of Charles Morris to the position.

Brian Tarrant was also a candidate for the job.

“I’m excited to get back to my alma mater,” Morris said. “I’m excited to get back to the community. I’m excited to get to work with the kids because it feels right.”

Morris said that he wants to focus on getting the players’ strength and conditioning ready for next season and, more importantly to him, getting academic plans ready for the kids to make sure they have success year-round.

“We’re not just talking football. We’re talking life,” Morris said. “Our goal is to make sure everybody leaves here with a life plan, whether you’ve decided to be a college football player, just go to college, get into a trade or just get into the workforce.

“And you’re only good at it when you first handle your goals in the classroom. Let’s make sure we have a team to support them in that role. Because without that, all these different opportunities won’t happen.”

Morris comes to Penn Hills after spending about 10 years at Plum. He was the team’s defensive coordinator under head coach Matt Morgan from 2012-2021. Prior to that, he spent a few years coaching at Gateway. He is a 2009 graduate of Edinboro University and a 2005 graduate of Penn Hills. While at Penn Hills, he was a three-year letterman for the school’s basketball and football programs.

He will make $8,779.48 per year.

“I think he’s the best candidate,” said school board president Erin Vecchio. “I think he has a great education and will do great things for the community. Most importantly, he’s a counselor and he can take these kids to places beyond football.”

Several of Morris’s former teammates spoke at the podium, praising his commitment to building a culture defined by a family atmosphere and a strong focus on academics.

“He’s the guy,” said LaVaughn Wesley. “He’s going to love you guys, like one of his other teammates said … holistically. With ya’ll ready to jump in, you’re not just going to succeed on the field, but in life in general.”

Meanwhile, several current players also spoke at the meeting to voice support for former defensive coordinator and secondary coach Tarrant, who was also in attendance. The same praises from Morris’s former teammates were sung for Tarrant from his former players.

“We fought for (Tarrant). We thought he deserved the job,” said junior outside linebacker and halfback Keith Pelmon. “We do have open arms for the new head coach. Ready to win. Ready to play Penn Hills football.”

The current players who spoke credited Tarrant with keeping the team together in the wake of former head coach Jon LeDonne taking the head coaching job at Pine-Richland. Many said that they considered him a father figure, including Pelmon, who also said that the family atmosphere spoken of by Morris’ former teammates helped calm him about the hire.

“(Morris’ teammates’ support) already gave me that family feeling,” Pelmon said. “I like his vibe. I like how it’s looking. It looks like he has a lot of supportive people ready to help the team get to the next level because that’s where the expectation is for Penn Hills football.”

Tarrant, who was co-defensive coordinator during the team’s 2018 PIAA championship run, voiced his support for Morris.

“(The players’ support) means everything to me,” Tarrant said. “I love the community. I love the kids. I love the history of Penn Hills football. Seems like they wanted to go with a guy who is from the area. I get that and I respect that. Coach is a good coach. I’ve coached against him. I know him well. He’s a really good man and I’m sure he’ll do Penn Hills a good service.”

Morris takes over a team that went 8-4 last season and shared the WPIAL Class 5A Northeast Conference crown with Kiski Area and North Hills with a 4-1 record. The Indians fell to 5A runner-up Moon in the WPIAL semifinals, 14-9. The program is just four years removed from the 2018 PIAA championship, its first since 1995.

“Let’s get ready to rock ‘n’ roll,” Morris said. “But let’s make sure our grades are first and we get the community involved.”