Glenville State Dedicates New Ike And Sue Morris Stadium, Opens It With Victory

GLENVILLE, W.Va. — Before Glenville State University played the first official football game inside its new stadium Thursday night, the university stopped to recognize the family whose support has helped shape athletics and the broader campus for decades.

The new Ike and Sue Morris Stadium was formally dedicated shortly before the Pioneers' home opener against Millersville University, placing the Morris family name on a new facility that represents one of the most visible changes to the Glenville State campus in years.

The ceremony celebrated Ike and Sue Morris and their family's longstanding relationship with Glenville State and the Gilmer County community.

Glenville State President Mark Manchin said after the dedication that many people helped make the evening possible, but specifically credited the Morris family and their years of support for the university and community.

For Ike and Sue Morris, Thursday's dedication represented the latest chapter in a connection to Glenville State that stretches back generations.

Sue Morris graduated from Glenville State in 1965 with a degree in elementary education and spent more than three decades teaching in Gilmer County schools. She later served in leadership positions on Glenville State's Board of Governors and has also served the university through its Foundation.

Ike Morris came to Glenville in 1962 during the region's oil and gas boom. He went on to build Waco Oil & Gas Co. and became a longtime businessman and philanthropist in central West Virginia.

Together, the Morrises have spent decades investing back into the community they made home.

Their relationship with Glenville State football is particularly longstanding.

In 2001, the Morrises provided funding for the installation of artificial turf at the former Pioneer Field, helping transform the facility that became known as I.L. and Sue Morris Stadium. Their support later helped fund additional stadium improvements including track facilities, bleachers, the field house and other athletic upgrades.

Their impact eventually expanded well beyond the football field.

In 2008, Ike and Sue Morris announced a $5 million gift to Glenville State, which was then the largest private gift in the institution's history. The contribution helped launch a broader capital campaign supporting academic programs, facilities, athletics and economic development.

Their support has also included the Waco Center, the Sue Morris Sports Complex, scholarships and numerous other projects throughout Glenville State and Gilmer County. In 2016, the couple was inducted into the Glenville State Athletic Hall of Fame for their contributions to Pioneer athletics.

Today, the Glenville State University Foundation lists Mr. and Mrs. I.L. Morris among donors whose lifetime giving to the university has exceeded $10 million.

That history gave Thursday night's dedication significance beyond opening a new set of bleachers and a football field.

The new stadium is part of the larger Morris Family Health and Fitness Complex, which is being developed as a home for Pioneer football, women's soccer and track and field while also supporting Glenville State's expanding health sciences programs.

The project includes new seating, turf, a track, lighting, a video scoreboard and upgraded football and media facilities. The broader complex is also designed to include academic space for health science instruction and a fitness center serving the university and surrounding community.

University leaders have described the project as an investment not only in athletics, but in Glenville State's role in rural West Virginia.

For one evening, however, the focus was on the stadium.

The dedication ceremony began shortly before the scheduled 6 p.m. kickoff, bringing together university officials, the Morris family, students, alumni, fans and members of the community to mark the opening of a new home for Pioneer football.

Then Glenville State gave the new stadium a memorable first chapter.

The Pioneers fell behind Millersville 21-17 entering the fourth quarter before quarterback J.D. Sherrod connected with Amir Simmons for a 15-yard touchdown that gave Glenville State a 24-21 lead.

Millersville drove into Glenville State territory in the final minute, but Khaliq Johnson broke up a fourth-down pass near the goal line to preserve the victory.

Sherrod finished with 277 passing yards and three touchdowns as Glenville State improved to 1-1. The victory was also Jake Casteel's first as Glenville State's head coach.

For the Morris family and Glenville State, it provided a fitting finish to a night built around something much larger than the final score.

More than 25 years after Ike and Sue Morris helped transform Glenville State's football field with new turf, a new stadium carrying their names was formally dedicated.

And the first official football game played there ended with the Pioneers celebrating a win.