Former Decatur linebacker and fullback Larry Morris was born to win championships and did so at all three levels of the game. The storied defender won state titles in 1949 and 1950 with the Bulldogs, led Georgia Tech to a college national title in 1952, and in 1963 he won an NFL title with the Chicago Bears to complete the gridiron trifecta. In high school, he was the Atlanta Journal-Constitution Class 2A Back of the Year in 1950. Morris’ physical capabilities were far before his time as he was just 16 years old when he played his senior year. In 2007, the AJC ranked Morris the No. 14 Georgia high school football player of all time. During his four years at Georgia Tech, the Yellow Jackets went 40-5-2, making a bowl game every season. Morris was a three-time first-team All-SEC player. He became the first former Georgia high school player to be selected in the first round of an NFL draft when he was drafted in 1955 as the seventh overall pick by the Los Angeles Rams. As a linebacker for the Bears, he was the MVP of the 1963 NFL Championship game against the New York Giants. Morris played 10 NFL seasons, started 100 games and was named to the NFL’s 1960s All-Decade Team.
