This year is Head Coach Chuck Morrell’s ninth year at the helm of the Oredigger football program and as a head football coach. He starts the 2018 season with a 46-40 overall record.
Coach Morrell guided the Orediggers to a 5-5 record last season. The Orediggers entered the NAIA Coaches Poll at No. 23 after defeating College of Idaho and Eastern Oregon to start the season. Tech reached No. 20 after winning three of their first four contests. The Orediggers went 2-4 the remainder of the season with close losses on the road at No. 22 Montana Western and No. 19 Eastern Oregon as well as against College of Idaho at home. Montana Tech ended on a high note upsetting Frontier Conference Champion No. 11 Rocky Mountain College 31-27 in Billings to close out the 2018 season.
The Orediggers ranked second in the conference in rushing per game led by the top running back in the conference Jed Fike. The junior back averaged 134 yards a game while helping the Orediggers rush 173.6 yards. Fike was named honorable mention All-America after finishing ranked fourth in the NAIA in rushing and fifth in rushing yards per game.
Senior receiver Dion Williams broke three long standing records last season. Williams led the Frontier in receptions and finished his career with the top marks in school history in receptions (203), yards (2,713), and receiving touchdowns (23).
Montana Tech ranked fourth in total defense giving up 374.1 yards per game. Junior linebacker Jacob Clarke led the team in tackles with 65 followed closely by junior safety Tucker Rauthe with 63. Senior linebacker Connor Wines led the team in sacks (7).
Coach Morrell was named the Frontier Conference Coach of the Year in 2015 and 2016, as well as being named AFCA Regional Coach of the Year. Montana Tech won back-to-back Frontier Conference Titles while going 20-4 over the two seasons. The Orediggers won postseason home games and reached the NAIA Football Championship Series (FCS) Quarterfinals both years.
In 2012, Morrell earned his first Frontier Conference Coach of the Year award and was also named the AFCA Regional Coach of the Year after leading the Orediggers to their first Frontier Conference title since 2004. That same year Morrell led the Orediggers on an eight-game win streak and a berth into the NAIA Football Championship Series for the first time since 2005. Initially unranked, the team also reached No. 7 in the polls that year.
Morrell arrived at Tech from the University of South Dakota, where he served as the defensive coordinator in 2009. Prior to his stint at USD, Morrell coached at the University of Sioux Falls from 1998-2009, where he served as the defensive coordinator and assistant head coach.
During his time at Sioux Falls, the Cougars played in five NAIA national championship games, winning three titles (2006, 2008, 2009). From 2006-2009, the Cougars were the most dominant program in the NAIA, with a record of 56-1 and their only loss in that span was in the 2007 national title game.
Morrell also led the athletic department at Montana Tech, serving as Athletic Director from 2014 to 2017. During his tenure the Orediggers made the national playoffs twice in football and also saw the Volleyball team make it first appearance at the NAIA national tournament.
As a player at Sioux Falls, he was the leading tackler on the 1996 NAIA Division II national championship team. Coach Morrell, who produced 44 All-Conference and 11 All-American defensive players at Sioux Falls, has released numerous DVDs on his "uptempo 3-4 defense." He was recently inducted into the Cougar Hall of Fame.
Coach Morrell, who is a native of Bon Homme, South Dakota, lives in Butte with his wife Jen, and two daughters, Selene and Aleia.
