Terrance Morring has waited his entire life for this one moment, one chance to emerge from the shadows and show the world what he is capable of on the football field.

It’s the kind of opportunity the 2005 Winter Springs graduate had always envisioned, but has yet to fully realize.

“It’s always in the back of my head mind that the world is watching,” said Morring earlier this week.

Terrance Morring (Photo by Mount Union College/Fred Cockrill)

After missing the entire 2008 college football season with multiple knee injuries, the senior running back at Mount Union leads the tradition-rich Purple Raiders into the Stagg Bowl, the Division III championship game, on Saturday at 11 a.m. in front of a national audience on ESPN2.

Morring has had a bit of a breakout season by leading an unbeaten team in rushing through 14 games with 1,091 yards and 15 touchdowns on 223 carries.

“I actually got to show some people that have doubted me for a long time, saying I couldn’t do it, that I could play at this level,” said Morring.

If indeed there were doubts, it’d be hard to call them unwarranted.

As a quiet contributor at Winter Springs, the self-proclaimed student of the game took little issue with lining up wherever the Bears needed him while in high school. Whether blocking, rushing, or catching passes out of the backfield he continued to up his football IQ as he shared the spotlight. Yet he never gave up on the idea that he’d have his moment in the sun.

The obstacles were plenty following his senior season, though. Despite being a good student, his SAT score was not high enough to field the full-ride scholarship offered up by Mississippi Valley State. After contemplating the idea of enrolling at a junior college in California he ended up in the cooler climate of Ohio, at a program that has won six national titles this past decade.

Terrance Morring (Photo by Lynne Browske)

Saturday will be the fifth-straight meeting in the title game between Mount Union and Wisconsin-Whitewater. Morring played a minor role in the 2005 win and started at fullback – all 5-foot-10, 205 pounds of him – when they won again in 2006.

But in 2007 the toll of playing with a cracked left kneecap during the season caught up with him as he then suffered a meniscus tear in his right knee. Mount Union lost in the title game that year and Morring was forced to watch from the sideline a year ago as his teammates reclaimed their spot atop Division III.

Morring said he “put it all in God’s hands” and worked diligently in rehab to stake claim to the leading role out of the backfield this season, which he let slip away his freshman year when one fumble opened up the door for a teammate to take over the reigns.

Once Mount Union Coach Larry Kehres gave Morring the opportunity that once upon a time eluded him early in his career, he literally ran with it.

“He knew what type of player he had in me,” said Morring, who eclipsed 100 yards in a game six times this season.

And apparently there’s much more to him than just playing football. Morring graduated this month with a bachelor degree in criminal justice and a minor in health and will return home to Central Florida following Saturday’s game in Salem, Virginia.

But first, there’s one more thing on the to-do list before he hangs up his Mount Union colors for good.

“It’s time to shine,” he said. “Time to show the world what Terrance Morring is all about.”

– More on Morring –

- Jeffrey Zupanic at The Review

- Matt Florjancic at D3Sports