Oklahoma State coach Eric Morris kills armadillo in yard

Oklahoma State coach Eric Morris said he recently shot and killed an armadillo that had been damaging his yard. Morris described the overnight encounter during a session with reporters Tuesday, saying he had "a couple of armadillo problems tearing up my lawn."

Morris said he couldn't sleep and got up around 2:30 a.m. a couple of days earlier, seeing it as "a great opportunity" to deal with the animal, which he said "was crushing my yard, my flower beds, digging everything up." It was his first encounter with an armadillo.

Morris said he texted his neighbors afterward to apologize for the gunshot, noting that it was legal because he lives in the country. "But I did get rid of him," he said.

Morris was hired to replace Mike Gundy, the longtime Cowboys coach who was fired last September, after Oklahoma State went 1-11 last season. Morris went 22-16 in three seasons at North Texas before taking the Oklahoma State job. Oklahoma State plays its 2026 opener Sept. 5 against Tulsa.