| Jack Morton | |
| Size: | 220 |
| Birth Date: | 22 July 1922 |
| Birth Place: | East St. Louis, Illinois, U.S. |
| Death Place: | Manteno, Illinois, U.S. |
| Player Years1: | 1942–1943 |
| Player Team1: | Missouri |
| Player Years2: | 1944 |
| Player Team2: | Purdue |
| Player Years3: | 1945 |
| Player Team3: | Chicago Bears |
| Player Years4: | 1946 |
| Player Team4: | Los Angeles Dons |
| Player Years5: | 1947 |
| Player Team5: | Buffalo Bills |
| Player Positions: | End, defensive end, defensive back |
| Coach Years1: | 1953–1955 |
| Coach Team1: | DePauw (Line) |
| Coach Years2: | 1956 |
| Coach Team2: | Toledo |
| Coach Years3: | 1957–1958 |
| Coach Team3: | Green Bay Packers (DL) |
| Coach Years4: | 1959 |
| Coach Team4: | Marquette (Asst.) |
| Coach Years5: | 1961 |
| Coach Team5: | Grand Rapids Blazers |
| Coach Years6: | 1963 |
| Coach Team6: | Grand Rapids Blazers |
| Coach Years7: | 1964 |
| Coach Team7: | Joliet Explorers |
| Overall Record: | 1–7–1 (NCAA) 10–12–1 (UFL) |
| Championships: | 1961 United Football League championship |
| Awards: | |
John Joseph Morton (July 22, 1922 – December 17, 1983) was an American football player and coach. He played in the National Football League (NFL) with the Chicago Bears in 1945 and in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) with the Los Angeles Dons in 1946 and the Buffalo Bills in 1947. Morton was the head football coach at the University of Toledo for one season, in 1956, compiling a record of 1–7–1.
Morton was a member of the Missouri Tigers football team that played in the 1942 Sugar Bowl and was a member of the 1943 All-Big Six Conference football team. He played for the 1944 Purdue Boilermakers football team as a member of the United States Navy.[1] He was selected by the Chicago Bears in the 1944 NFL draft.[2] He played for the Bears in 1945 and signed with the Los Angeles Dons of the All-America Football Conference on February 28, 1946.[3] He scored his only professional touchdown that year in a game against Chicago Rockets.[4] He played two games for the Buffalo Bills in 1947.[5]
From 1953 to 1955, Morton was the line coach at DePauw University. On February 23, 1956, he was hired for the same position at the University of Toledo.[6] Three months later, head coach Forrest England was given a year's leave due to illness and Morton was promoted to head coach.[7] Toledo went 1–7–1 in 1956 and both Morton and England were fired at the end of the season.[8]
From 1957 to 1958, Morton was the defensive line coach for the Green Bay Packers of the NFL.[9] In 1959, he returned to the college ranks as an assistant at Marquette University.[10]
Morton was the head coach of the Grand Rapids Blazers of the United Football League in 1961 and led the team to the league championship.[11] In 1962, he was named head coach and director of player personnel for the Jackson Panthers of the American Football Conference, but the league folded before the season began.[12] He returned to Grand Rapids in 1963, but resigned prior to the 1964 season.[13] [14] He instead spent that year as the defensive coordinator of the UFL's Joliet Explorers.[15]