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People SearchFind an individual who either played a sport or was a member of a support group. Search by last name by clicking on the first letter of the person's last name.
Mr. Justin "Capn" Morgan
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Home Phone: 225-266-1479 Captain Morgan finishes on high, low note By JOSEPH SCHIEFELBEIN NEW ORLEANS — The tough thing about the University of Louisiana at Lafayette getting eliminated by Alabama on Sunday in a regional at Turchin Stadium is that it ends a dream career for catcher Justin Morgan. “It’s just deserving,” UL-Lafayette coach Tony Robichaux said. “I’ve never seen an individual in my 17 years come to practice every day and work as hard as he does, with no chance to play.” Morgan, from East Ascension High in Gonzales, followed his dad’s footsteps to the school. His dad, Jamie Morgan, had been a catcher for the Cajuns, a battery mate of Robichaux, then a pitcher. “It’s always been a dream of mine to come here,” Morgan said. “And all of my dreams came true. It’s a great place. I just wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.” To chase that dream, Morgan, a former second-team all-district catcher, first had to walk on, beginning as a bullpen catcher and redshirting in 2001. But, after starting 20 games in 2003 and appearing in 16 last season, his work earned him not just a starting role but the job of team captain. “What’s been so good about him is it’s who he is, where his value is,” Robichaux said. “He’s been voted hardest worker on the team the last three, four years. He worked day in and day out. And he never worked according to what he was going to get in return. He just worked. “Because of that, he evolved, with the respect of the whole team and the coaching staff, to becoming a very good leader. You just can’t put enough value on a leader.” With the most playing time he’s ever seen, Morgan had a career year in his numbers across the board. And perhaps better yet, he graduated with a degree in kinesiology in the fall. He took classes in education in the spring and will enter graduate school in administration in the fall. Said Morgan, of his inspiration other than his family, “My teammates keep me pushing every day when I’m tired.” When he went to the plate in the ninth, Morgan just wanted a base hit to get a rally started. But he got the fourth homer of the season, the only four of his career. “I was trying to get something going. It just so happened it went out of the park. I hit it pretty well,” Morgan said. “I’m sure one day I’m going to be telling a story about it. I’m sure it’s going to be a lot longer than it was today. Of course, we didn’t want to lose. But it’s nice to go out like that, trying to get the team going.” Originally published June 6, 2005 Captain can hit now too April 01, 2005 – Morgan adds bat to arsenal Dan McDonald They’ve always called him “Captain.” To his University of Louisiana teammates it’s a sign of respect, and not just because Justin Morgan is hitting .429 over his last 12 games after a career of offensive struggles. Before he caught his first inning this year, before he got his first hit, he was “Captain.” The members of the Ragin’ Cajun baseball team had one of their happiest moments of the season when he tied two school hitting records at the Metrodome in Minneapolis, because they think so much of “Captain.” He’s one of the elder statesmen on the squad, a fifth-year senior, and Cajun coach Tony Robichaux says that “Captain” has done more to live up to that moniker than just about anyone he’s ever coached. “They respect him because of who he is and how he goes about handling his business,” Robichaux said. “They know that he’s been through the wars and how hard he works every day.” There was no election. Morgan is “Captain” … has been for a while, and will be until the time that he plays his final UL game this season. But he was “Captain” way back in his freshman season, before he had a chance to impress coaches and teammates with his devotion and work ethic, and it wasn’t because of any fondness for a particular brand of rum. But it was that character on that bottle, and the quick wit of former Cajun pitcher Bubba Olivier, that combined to create the nickname. “I had a clock that had a picture of the Captain Morgan character on it when I came here,” Morgan said. “When I met Bubba, he saw the clock, and he put that and my last name together.” That was in the fall of 2000, one year after the Cajuns made their historic trip to the College World Series. “Captain” redshirted his first spring in 2001, and since then Morgan has built a reputation for defense and for his ability to handle pitchers and call a game. But he also had the reputation as a “good-field, no-hit” player. So how’s he hitting .400 this season, with hits in all but one game in which he’s played this year? “I’ve changed my offensive approach some,” Morgan said, “working with coach (John) Szefc in the cages and using the middle of the field, the big part of the field. You can increase your average tremendously doing that. I’ve taken more cuts and more reps. “But more than anything, it’s been more mental for me. I’ve been real relaxed, haven’t put pressure on myself, and I’ve built confidence in myself knowing that I can hit at this level.” That confidence was buoyed at the Metrodome, when he rapped out five hits after being inserted into the lineup against Harvard. He also had three doubles in that game, each of those numbers tying school single-game records. He also had four RBIs in that game, and had five more less than two weeks later against Lamar. In all he’s riding a six-game hitting streak into today’s Sun Belt Conference series opener at Arkansas State, and he’s had 15 hits and 16 RBI in his last nine games – after collecting only four RBI and 21 hits in his entire career entering 2005. “It’s been pretty exciting, maybe a little surprising,” he said. “I told myself before the season started that whenever coach gave me a chance to play, I was going to give my best. I’ve had a couple of good games, but I’ve tried to be humble about those because that’s only a few games. You’ve got to move on and I’ve got to try to keep helping our team.” Before his recent hitting rampage, Morgan’s biggest contributions had come behind the plate rather than at the plate. Robichaux trusts Morgan so much that when he’s catching, Morgan calls every pitch. “Adam (Massiatte) does the same thing when he’s in there,” Morgan said. “He’s picked up on it really quick. But I think it’s still pretty rare. Some other colleges are starting to do that, with coaches showing confidence in the catchers they put out there.” In fact, Morgan said that Robichaux and the Cajuns may have had a little something to do with that trend. “I remember watching the World Series in 2000 at my house,” Morgan said, “and I remember how much the commentators talked about how well Danny (Massiatte) called the game and how much confidence coach Robe had in him. They had a great pitching staff and Danny did a great job, and maybe that changed the way some of them think.” Those coaching philosophies aren’t lost on “Captain,” since he’s hoping to take the bachelor’s degree he finished in December and apply it to a coaching career on the prep level and perhaps later in college. “I want to keep those options open and maybe the college level is something to explore,” he said. “But mostly I love the game, and I hope I can pass on what I’ve learned to someone else, something they can use to their benefit.” Originally published April 1, 2005 Morgan Named Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week Monday, March 28, 2005 LAFAYETTE – Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns senior catcher Justin Morgan was named the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week, as announced Monday by the conference office. Morgan, a native of Gonzales, La., led the Cajuns offensively last week, going 6-for-15 with a home run and a team-high nine RBI. In Tuesday’s 23-3 win over Lamar, Morgan went 2-for-5 with his first career home run and a career-high five RBI. Morgan knocked in three more runs during the Cajuns’ 22-4 Sun Belt Conference opening win Friday night. He also went 2-for-4 with an RBI single in Saturday’s come-from-behind victory against South Alabama. Since March 1, Morgan is batting a team-best .429 with a team-leading six doubles. Earlier this season against Harvard, Morgan became the 13th player in school history to record five hits in a game, going 5-for-5 with a then-career-high four RBI. Morgan is now batting .405 with a home run, 14 RBI and a team-leading eight doubles. Louisiana-Lafayette (22-5, 2-1 Sun Belt) moved up two spots to No. 17 in the Collegiate Baseball Top 30 Poll which was released Monday. Louisiana-Lafayette remained unranked for the second week in a row in the Baseball America Top 25 Poll.
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