Report: Chad Morris to return to SMU for 2017 season

It appears Baylor can remove Chad Morris from consideration as its next head coach, as sources told the Dallas News that the SMU coach told his staff and players on Tuesday that he will return to the Mustangs for the 2017 season.

Morris was considered one of the front-runners for the vacant position with the Bears, but interest from both parties cooled after the Mustangs got hammered 75-31 by Navy over the weekend.

A source told Bill Nichols of the Dallas News that Morris countered an offer from Baylor with a five-year, $24.5-million contract that the school quickly turned down.

The 47-year-old inherited a program in disarray when he took the position with the Mustangs in 2015, and struggled to a 2-10 record in his first season as head coach. SMU rebounded with a 5-7 mark this season, including a massive upset of Houston on Oct. 22.

With Morris now out of the running for the Baylor job, sources told Travis Haney of 247 Sports that North Carolina's Larry Fedora, Colorado's Mike MacIntyre, and Cal's Sonny Dykes are now the leading candidates for the position.