Report: Former coach Guy Morriss diagnosed with Alzheimer’s

Former University of Kentucky football head coach Guy Morriss is battling Alzheimer’s disease, according to a report by WKYT-TV in Lexington on Monday.

Dr. Greg Jicha, who has been treating Morriss, told WKYT that the condition was probably a result of Morriss’s years as an offensive lineman in the National Football League.

Morriss, 66, has made improvements thanks to drugs and therapy after reaching a point where he could not dress himself or tie his shoes, WKYT reported.

Morriss led UK in 2001 and 2002 after a recruiting scandal that dismantled the program under Hal Mumme’s watch. Morriss guided the Wildcats to 2-9 and 7-5 seasons before leaving to become the head coach at Baylor, where he went 18-40 over five seasons. Morriss played 15 seasons in the NFL from 1973-1987 for Philadelphia and New England.

Morriss returned to Lexington in 2015 to join the coaching staff at Lexington Christian Academy.

“We just fell in love with the state and the people here,” Morriss said of his reason for returning to Lexington with his wife, Jackie. “We wanted to come back, get in the communities, get active again in the communities, give back to football and make it our home again.”

This story was originally published May 22, 2017 at 6:50 PM with the headline "Report: Former coach Guy Morriss diagnosed with Alzheimer’s."