Jim Harrick recalls the days of glory at soon-to-close Morningside High
Much has changed in the community surrounding Morningside High. You can see the outlines of SoFi Stadium and Intuit Dome, newly built world-class sports complexes that didn't exist when the Inglewood school opened in 1951.
Then there's the dramatic dip in school enrollment. Once a high school with more than 2,000 students, the latest enrollment figure has 421 students, which isn't enough to fill bleachers in the gymnasium.
The school district has made the decision to close Morningside at the end of June. Students from nearby Inglewood High will move into the space until that school finishes a rebuilding project.
Morningside has a long tradition of sports stars having won numerous championships and earned many trophies. The banners visible on both sides of the school gym date to 1951, from track to basketball to football.
The school has been particularly known for basketball, with former Lakers Byron Scott and Elden Campbell among its alumni. There's also Lisa Leslie, a four-time Olympic team gold medalist who scored 101 points in a high school game. Stais Boseman was one of the best two-sport standouts from Morningside, leading his team to a state title in basketball in 1992 while starring as a running back in football. An ESPN 30/30 was made in 2017 about what happened to the five starters after the original documentary, "Hardwood Dreams in 1993."
No one can offer better insight into the impact Morningside had on their life than Jim Harrick, who won an NCAA basketball title coaching UCLA in 1995 and got his start at Morningside as a junior varsity coach in 1964.
'I go to places in Los Angeles and people come up to me, 'I went to Morningside.' It's amazing,' the 84-year-old Harrick said.
He was an assistant coach to Lee Smelser at Inglewood, taking over as varsity baseball coach in 1966 and head basketball coach in 1969 while teaching English.
'My years at Morningside were just spectacular,' he said. 'It was a learning, growing period. The most important thing you learn is how to teach in English class and make lesson plans.'
He was around when one of the greatest players in California history was holding court, Raymond Lewis of Verbum Dei.
'My first summer we get into the Gardena summer league,' Harrick said. 'We go play Verbum Dei. My head is going left and right. Oh my God. I've never seen anyone like that. He's one of the top five players I've ever seen.'
Harrick had one of the top high school teams in the nation in his final season in 1972, then left to become a college assistant at Utah State and begin a long college coaching career that saw his teams at Pepperdine, UCLA, Rhode Island and Georgia win 472 games.
'The lessons I learned at Morningside propelled me to have the career I had,' he said.
Like many alumni, he's sad the school will be closing but the sports program has deteriorated. The football team hasn't been to the playoffs since 2013 and lost to Inglewood 106-0 in a controversial 2021 game.
"It's terrible the school district couldn't keep it going," said former football coach Derwin Henderson, who was an LAPD sergeant and coached the last playoff team. "A lot of police officers came out of Morningside."
The school district is putting together a project to save memorabilia. Current coaches will have to apply for coaching opportunities in the district.
Harrick has lots of positive memories. He remembers holding a camp for fourth-graders, with Scott and Reggie Theus among his campers in the gym.
'We had some great players in the South Bay Area,' he said. 'Our track program was sensational.'
Harrick said he studied John Wooden during those years when UCLA was winning NCAA title after NCAA title while using the Bruins' offense at Morningside.
'I thank the Lord every day for the joys of the John Wooden system of basketball,' he said.
It's all part of the legacy of the Morningside Monarchs.
Sign up for the L.A. Times SoCal high school sports newsletter to get scores, stories and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sports so popular.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox Sports
2 hours ago
- Fox Sports
USC, Texas A&M share NCAA track & field title after USF rallies to win 1,600 relay
Associated Press EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — South Florida ran a brilliant 1,600-meter relay to close the NCAA men's outdoor track and field championships Friday night, leaving Southern California and Texas A&M tied for the team title. The Trojans, who won the indoor title earlier this year but hadn't won an outdoor title in 49 years, and the Aggies, both finished with 41 points, one ahead of Arkansas. That came after a late surge by the USF anchor to edge Texas A&M in the final race, winning in 3 minutes, 42 seconds. Arkansas was third with the Trojans a disappointing eighth to earn just one team point. The Aggies earned eight points in the relay — a win would have been worth 10 points — and the Razorbacks got six. Arkansas protested after the race that a USF runner hindered a Razorback but the protest was denied. If successful, Texas A&M would have won the title and Arkansas and USC would have tied for second. The women's title will be decided Saturday at Hayward Field on the Oregon campus. Sam Whitmarsh of Texas A&M, runner-up a year ago, beat indoor champion Matthew Erickson of Oregon to capture the 800 in 1:45.86, the second-fastest in school history. Jordan Anthony of Arkansas, the NCAA champion in the indoor 60, added an outdoor title, winning the 100 in 10.07 from Lane 9. Ja'Kobe Tharp, who won the 60r hurdles at the indoor championships for Auburn, added the 110 hurdle title to his resume with a personal-best time of 13.05. Tharp ran the fifth-fastest time in NCAA history, only 0.07 off of Grant Holloway's record. Auburn also won the 400 relay in a time of 38.33. Samujel Ogazi of Alabama raced to a dominant win in the 400 with a time of 44.84, more than six-tenths faster than the runner-up. The sophomore, who made the Olympic finals in Paris, became the first Nigerian athlete to win the 400 NCAA title in 26 years. James Corrigan of BYU, a 2024 Olympian, won the 3,000 steeplechase in 8:16.41, grabbing the lead at the last water jump. His time is the fourth fastest in college history. Nathan Green of Washington, the 2023 champion, won the 1,500 meters in 3:47.26 with the top 11 finishing within 0.68 of Green. Brian Masau on Oklahoma State added the outdoor title in the 5,000 to the indoor title he won earlier this year, finishing in 13:20.59. Ezekiel Nathaniel of Baylor lowered his Nigerian record to 47.49 in the 400 hurdles, the second-fastest time in the world this year. Carli Makarawu of Kentucky took the 400 in 19.84 seconds, a Zimbabwe national record, edging countryman Makanakaishe Charamba of Auburn, who ran 19.92. Oklahoma's Ralford Mullings, who returned to the championship for the second time in his career, took the discus title by launching a meet-record and person-best 227 feet, 4 inches. Brandon Green Jr. and Floyd Whitaker gave Oklahoma a 1-2 finish in the triple jump with Green soaring 55-2 to win by more than a foot. Green led from the first jump and had it wrapped up after five rounds and then had his best leap to end it. Arvesta Troupe of Mississippi cleared 7-5 1/4 to win the high jump. ___ AP college sports: recommended
2 hours ago
USC, Texas A&M share NCAA track & field title after USF rallies to win 1,600 relay
EUGENE, Ore. -- South Florida ran a brilliant 1,600-meter relay to close the NCAA men's outdoor track and field championships Friday night, leaving Southern California and Texas A&M tied for the team title. The Trojans, who won the indoor title earlier this year but hadn't won an outdoor title in 49 years, and the Aggies, both finished with 41 points, one ahead of Arkansas. That came after a late surge by the USF anchor to edge Texas A&M in the final race, winning in 3 minutes, 42 seconds. Arkansas was third with the Trojans a disappointing eighth to earn just one team point. The Aggies earned eight points in the relay — a win would have been worth 10 points — and the Razorbacks got six. Arkansas protested after the race that a USF runner hindered a Razorback but the protest was denied. If successful, Texas A&M would have won the title and Arkansas and USC would have tied for second. The women's title will be decided Saturday at Hayward Field on the Oregon campus. Sam Whitmarsh of Texas A&M, runner-up a year ago, beat indoor champion Matthew Erickson of Oregon to capture the 800 in 1:45.86, the second-fastest in school history. Jordan Anthony of Arkansas, the NCAA champion in the indoor 60, added an outdoor title, winning the 100 in 10.07 from Lane 9. Ja'Kobe Tharp, who won the 60r hurdles at the indoor championships for Auburn, added the 110 hurdle title to his resume with a personal-best time of 13.05. Tharp ran the fifth-fastest time in NCAA history, only 0.07 off of Grant Holloway's record. Auburn also won the 400 relay in a time of 38.33. Samujel Ogazi of Alabama raced to a dominant win in the 400 with a time of 44.84, more than six-tenths faster than the runner-up. The sophomore, who made the Olympic finals in Paris, became the first Nigerian athlete to win the 400 NCAA title in 26 years. James Corrigan of BYU, a 2024 Olympian, won the 3,000 steeplechase in 8:16.41, grabbing the lead at the last water jump. His time is the fourth fastest in college history. Nathan Green of Washington, the 2023 champion, won the 1,500 meters in 3:47.26 with the top 11 finishing within 0.68 of Green. Brian Masau on Oklahoma State added the outdoor title in the 5,000 to the indoor title he won earlier this year, finishing in 13:20.59. Ezekiel Nathaniel of Baylor lowered his Nigerian record to 47.49 in the 400 hurdles, the second-fastest time in the world this year. Carli Makarawu of Kentucky took the 400 in 19.84 seconds, a Zimbabwe national record, edging countryman Makanakaishe Charamba of Auburn, who ran 19.92. Oklahoma's Ralford Mullings, who returned to the championship for the second time in his career, took the discus title by launching a meet-record and person-best 227 feet, 4 inches. Brandon Green Jr. and Floyd Whitaker gave Oklahoma a 1-2 finish in the triple jump with Green soaring 55-2 to win by more than a foot. Green led from the first jump and had it wrapped up after five rounds and then had his best leap to end it. Arvesta Troupe of Mississippi cleared 7-5 1/4 to win the high jump.
Los Angeles Times
2 hours ago
- Los Angeles Times
USC men capture share of NCAA outdoor track and field national title
EUGENE, Ore. — South Florida ran a brilliant 1,600-meter relay to close the NCAA men's outdoor track and field championships Friday night, leaving USC and Texas A&M tied for the team title. The Trojans, who won the indoor title earlier this year but hadn't won an outdoor title in 49 years, and the Aggies, both finished with 41 points, one ahead of Arkansas. That came after a late surge by the USF anchor to edge Texas A&M in the final race, winning in 3 minutes, 42 seconds. Arkansas was third with the Trojans a disappointing eighth to earn just one team point. The Aggies earned eight points in the relay — a win would have been worth 10 points — and the Razorbacks got six. Arkansas protested after the race that a USF runner hindered a Razorback but the protest was denied. If successful, Texas A&M would have won the title and Arkansas and USC would have tied for second. The women's title will be decided Saturday at Hayward Field on the Oregon campus. Sam Whitmarsh of Texas A&M, runner-up a year ago, beat indoor champion Matthew Erickson of Oregon to capture the 800 in 1:45.86, the second-fastest in school history. Jordan Anthony of Arkansas, the NCAA champion in the indoor 60, added an outdoor title, winning the 100 in 10.07 from Lane 9. Ja'Kobe Tharp, who won the 60r hurdles at the indoor championships for Auburn, added the 110 hurdle title to his resume with a personal-best time of 13.05. Tharp ran the fifth-fastest time in NCAA history, only 0.07 off of Grant Holloway's record. Auburn also won the 400 relay in a time of 38.33. Samujel Ogazi of Alabama raced to a dominant win in the 400 with a time of 44.84, more than six-tenths faster than the runner-up. The sophomore, who made the Olympic finals in Paris, became the first Nigerian athlete to win the 400 NCAA title in 26 years. James Corrigan of BYU, a 2024 Olympian, won the 3,000 steeplechase in 8:16.41, grabbing the lead at the last water jump. His time is the fourth fastest in college history. Nathan Green of Washington, the 2023 champion, won the 1,500 meters in 3:47.26 with the top 11 finishing within 0.68 of Green. Brian Masau on Oklahoma State added the outdoor title in the 5,000 to the indoor title he won earlier this year, finishing in 13:20.59. Ezekiel Nathaniel of Baylor lowered his Nigerian record to 47.49 in the 400 hurdles, the second-fastest time in the world this year. Carli Makarawu of Kentucky took the 400 in 19.84 seconds, a Zimbabwe national record, edging countryman Makanakaishe Charamba of Auburn, who ran 19.92. Oklahoma's Ralford Mullings, who returned to the championship for the second time in his career, took the discus title by launching a meet-record and person-best 227 feet, 4 inches. Brandon Green Jr. and Floyd Whitaker gave Oklahoma a 1-2 finish in the triple jump with Green soaring 55-2 to win by more than a foot. Green led from the first jump and had it wrapped up after five rounds and then had his best leap to end it. Arvesta Troupe of Mississippi cleared 7-5¼ to win the high jump.
