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The Georgia State transfer cornerback and native of Timmonsville, South Carolina was seeking the final destination of his college career, and he said he was eager to receive that inquiry from Elliott.

Especially considering Elliott was a college teammate of Morris鈥� father, Kelvin Morris, at Clemson.

鈥淐oach said, 鈥榊ou know, I played with your dad,鈥欌�� Ja鈥橫aric Morris said about that phone call he took from Elliott. 鈥淚 told him, 鈥業 know, Coach,鈥� and he was like, 鈥楥ome give us a shot. Come to Virginia and see how it is.鈥欌��

So, Morris made plans to visit UVa and was in Charlottesville earlier this week. He committed to the Cavaliers on Tuesday evening.

He said Elliott鈥檚 familiarity with the state of South Carolina helped him relate to Morris on top of the already established tie Elliott had with Morris鈥� dad.

鈥淸Elliott] knows how South Carolina kids are overlooked sometimes and how we have to grind to get to where we鈥檙e at now,鈥� Morris said. 鈥淎nd then with that connection, I couldn鈥檛 go anywhere else.鈥�

Morris had plenty of opportunities elsewhere to choose from, too. He said before visiting and deciding on UVa, he considered Mississippi State, Purdue and Wisconsin.

The 6-foot-3, 205-pounder said when he opted to enter the transfer portal, he wasn鈥檛 sure what to expect and what schools would show interest, but he wanted to test his value.

His career began at the junior college level with one season at Georgia Military College and one at Hutchinson Community College in Kansas ahead of transitioning to the FBS. He spent 2023 at Central Florida, but only appeared in one game before finally earning regular playing time in the second half of this past season.

鈥淭he journey has been long, but I鈥檝e stayed dedicated,鈥� Morris said, 鈥渁nd just kept pushing day by day even when things weren鈥檛 going my way. I still kept pushing.鈥�

He said his best experience came in 2022 with Hutchinson Community College, where he had 33 tackles and five interceptions, including two returned for touchdowns, while collecting All-Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference first-team accolades.

鈥淜ansas from South Carolina is like 22 hours away,鈥� Morris said with a laugh. 鈥淪o, I鈥檇 say the long distance helped me focus more, because when I was at [Georgia Military College], I was able to come home a lot. But being further away from my family, that forced me to lock in and put my big boy pants on.鈥�

He said that season taught him how to practice and prepare like a professional would, and that attitude is the one he plans on having this summer and fall with the Cavaliers.

Morris said his workmanlike approach eventually led to him earning increased playing time this past fall as the season went along and starts in the final two contests of the year.

At Georgia State, he tallied 11 tackles with two interceptions and two pass breakups. His interceptions came against Texas State and Coastal Carolina in the last two games.

鈥淚 was steadily working and never getting overwhelmed. I just kept pushing,鈥� Morris said. 鈥淭he first few games of the season, I was just playing my role on kickoff and kick return. I wasn鈥檛 getting that many reps. And it wasn鈥檛 because guys were doing bad on the team [late in the year], but I stepped up and took my opportunity and then I ran with it, never looked back.鈥�

Morris said he feels his strengths at corner are playing press-man coverage and his ball skills.

Across his four seasons at four different schools, he racked up 11 interceptions.

鈥淚 can locate the ball and I鈥檓 physical,鈥� he said.

During his visit with the Cavaliers, he had a dinner with Elliott and met with both defensive coordinator John Rudzinski and defensive backs coach Curome Cox.

The Hoos鈥� plan for Morris, he said, is for him to compete for a starting role right away. He wants to prove he鈥檚 good enough to play for a power-conference school and better his odds for an NFL opportunity this time next year.

鈥淐oming in from the Group of Five to the Power Four, I want to showcase my ability to play at a bigger stage and hopefully help the team get to an ACC championship,鈥� Morris said.

He said he enjoyed meeting his soon-to-be UVa teammates during his trip into town and that he鈥檚 really appreciated how they鈥檝e already reached out to welcome him since his commitment.

Morris said, too, while his dad is mellow and didn鈥檛 want to force his son to pick UVa or make a decision for his son, that he鈥檚 happy Morris is getting a chance to play for Elliott.

鈥淚 told [Elliott] in his office when we met that it was a bonus,鈥� he was a teammate of Morris鈥� dad, Morris said.

鈥淭hat was the bonus, and it did make me commit,鈥� he said.