Glenn Morris

After graduating from Colorado State in 1934, Glenn Morris stayed on at Fort Collins and worked as a part-time assistant to football coach, Harry Hughes. This gave Morris the time and facilities to develop his talents as a decathlete and in April 1936 he broke the U.S. record in his first ever decathlon competition at the Kansas Relays. Two months later, he won the Final Trials with a new world record (7,875) and in his third and final competition, Morris won the Olympic title, again with a new world record (7,900), after he had trailed teammate Bob Clark by two points after the first day.

In October 1936 Morris signed a contract with NBC as a radio announcer and in 1938 he had a brief career in movies, playing in three films, including the title role in “Tarzan’s Revenge.” He had a similarly brief career as a pro footballer with the Detroit Lions in 1940 and after being seriously wounded while serving as a naval officer in the Pacific he found employment difficult to come by. Sadly for a man who had been a nationwide celebrity after his Olympic victory, he died in poor circumstances in Palo Alto, California. In 2011 Colorado State honored him by re-naming the South College Field House the Glenn Morris Field House.

Personal Bests: 100 – 10.6 (1936); 400 – 49.4 (1936); 110H – 14.6 (1936); 400H – 544 (1934); LJ – 22-10½ (6.97) (1936); SP – 47-5 (14.45) (1936); DT – 141-5 (43.10) (1936); JT – 183-11 (56.06) (1936); Dec – 7254 (1936).