Kirk Morrison has been able to secure his dream job with the Raiders organization not once, but twice.
As a kid from Oakland, California, his lifelong dream was to play in the NFL for his hometown team. His parents became season ticket holders in his adolescence, and he holds countless memories at Oakland Coliseum, even before entering the NFL.
Dreams turned into reality when the Raiders selected Morrison with the 78th overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft.
"It's the ultimate honor to put on a uniform of the team you grew up watching and believing in," Morrison told Raiders.com. "And when you put that uniform on, you get a sense of pride, you get a sense of awareness, a sense that you're doing it for greater than just yourself.
"[It's for] the people out there who are Raiders fans, and the people that grow up and want to be Raiders and for the Raiders of past. All of that."
After five seasons playing for the Raiders and eight seasons in the league, he pivoted to his next lifelong dream: becoming a sports broadcaster.
It was a goal set in his mind as a high schooler watching SportsCenter on ESPN. He carried that to San Diego State, and worked on student broadcasts in the classroom while winning Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year awards on the field.
"I wanted to be a lot of the guys who were sports editors in the Bay Area and at sports stations," Morrison said. "I always had dreams of wanting to be a broadcaster and when I got to the NFL, I still did and guys laughed at me like, 'Man, you always thinking about radio and TV!' And I said, 'I love doing it.' Someone told me a long time ago that you'll spend more years out of the NFL than you will in the NFL. It hit home for me because now I'm in my 13th year of broadcasting and I feel I still haven't even arrived yet."
His first opportunity in sports broadcasting came with his alma mater as a color analyst for their football games. He eventually broke into the NFL, becoming the the pre- and post-game radio host for the Los Angeles Rams on ESPNLA, while also working with Sirius NFL Radio.
While his post-playing career has led to him covering Super Bowls, Pro Bowls and NFL Drafts – that kid from Oakland still had one dream in mind.
From the time he retired from football, he'd put out feelers to the Raiders about potentially filling a role within their broadcast team. This continued even through the success he obtained as a host for other platforms.
"Just put my name in a hat and leave it there," Morrison said. "Obviously those years have passed and they've had different guys in the spot, but I've always felt like at some point I would love to have this opportunity and didn't know if it was going to come or not."
Fifteen years after his playing his last down with the Raiders, he received the call.
While he's preparing to serve as an analyst on ESPN and ABC's college football coverage, the Raiders reached out to see if he could also be their radio color analyst heading into the 2025 season.
According to Morrison, he was left speechless.
"The Raiders have always been in my heart," he said. "It's always been a part of me. It's just been who I am. To come back and be able to be a voice of the Raider Nation, getting back involved in giving them the answers to the questions they need, the analyzation of what they see and what they hear, that's what I'm here for now.
"I feel like I bring pieces from my fan perspective, my player perspective and now my analyst perspective. I'm bringing all these worlds and combining them into one."
Morrison's debut comes this Thursday in the Raiders' preseason opener against the Seattle Seahawks. While in a different realm from strapping up shoulder pads and a helmet on a gameday, the jitters and nerves will still be the same.
And as he did when playing linebacker for the Silver and Black, he plans to bring the same intensity and passion over the airwaves.
"I'm the eyes and the ears of the Raider Nation," he said. "That's a powerful thing because they're listening. They want to know. That's why I don't want to let anybody down. I've got to give my all to it."
Take a look at photos of Raiders alumnus Kirk Morrison from his years of playing with the Silver and Black.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the preseason home game against the Arizona Cardinals at McAfee Coliseum, Friday, August 26, 2005, in Oakland, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) warming up before the regular season home game against the Kansas City Chiefs at McAfee Stadium, Sunday, September 18, 2005, in Oakland, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season home game against the Denver Broncos at McAfee Coliseum, Sunday, November 13, 2005, in Oakland, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season home game against the Miami Dolphins at McAfee Coliseum, Sunday, November 27, 2005, in Oakland, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) is introduced onto the field before the preseason home game against the San Francisco 49ers at McAfee Coliseum, Sunday, August 20, 2006, in Oakland, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the preseason home game against the Detroit Lions at McAfee Coliseum, Friday, August 25, 2006, in Oakland, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season away game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium, Sunday, September 17, 2006, in Baltimore, Md.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season away game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium, Sunday, September 17, 2006, in Baltimore, Md.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season away game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium, Sunday, November 19, 2006, in Kansas City, Mo.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season away game against the San Diego Chargers at Qualcomm Stadium, Sunday, November 16, 2006, in San Diego, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season away game against the San Diego Chargers at Qualcomm Stadium, Sunday, November 16, 2006, in San Diego, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) recovers a fumble for a 35-yard touchdown during the regular season home game against the Houston Texans at McAfee Coliseum, Sunday, December 3, 2006, in Oakland, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season away game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium, Sunday, December 10, 2006, in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) is introduced onto the field before the preseason home game against the St. Louis Rams at McAfee Coliseum, Friday, August 24, 2007, in Oakland, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) is introduced onto the field before the preseason home game against the St. Louis Rams at McAfee Coliseum, Friday, August 24, 2007, in Oakland, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the preseason home game against the St. Louis Rams at McAfee Coliseum, Friday, August 24, 2007, in Oakland, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) runs after making an interception during the regular season home game against the Cleveland Browns at McAfee Coliseum, Sunday, September 23, 2007, in Oakland, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season home game against the Kansas City Chiefs at McAfee Coliseum, Sunday, October 21, 2007, in Oakland, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) warming up before the regular season away game against the Tennessee Titans at LP Field, Sunday, October 28, 2007, in Nashville, Tenn.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season home game against the Chicago Bears at McAfee Coliseum, Sunday, November 11, 2007, in Oakland, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season away game against the Minnesota Vikings at Metrodome, Sunday, November 18, 2007, in Minneapolis, Minn.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season away game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium, Sunday, November 25, 2007, in Kansas City, Mo.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season home game against the Indianapolis Colts at McAfee Coliseum, Sunday, December 16, 2007, in Oakland, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) warming up before the regular season away game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium, Sunday, December 23, 2007, in Jacksonville, Fla.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) with fans after the regular season away game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium, Monday, September 14, 2008, in Kansas City, Mo.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season away game against the Miami Dolphins at Dolphin Stadium, Sunday, November 16, 2008, in Miami Gardens, Fla.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season home game against the Houston Texans at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Sunday, December 21, 2008, in Oakland, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season home game against the the Philadelphia Eagles at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Sunday, October 18, 2009, in Oakland, Calif.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season away game against the Dallas Cowboys at Cowboys Stadium, Thursday, November 26, 2009, in Arlington, Texas.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) on the sidelines during the regular season away game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field, Sunday, December 6, 2009, in Pittsburgh, Pa.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison (52) during the regular season home game against the Baltimore Ravens at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Sunday, January 3, 2010, in Oakland, Calif.
Raiders alumnus Kirk Morrison speaks during the 2019 Rookie Academy at the Oakland Raiders Practice Facility.
Raiders alumnus Kirk Morrison during the 2021 Draft Class Luncheon at Allegiant Stadium.
Raiders alumni Matt McCoy, Kirk Morrison and Frostee Rucker during the Las Vegas Raiders' preseason home game against the New England Patriots at Allegiant Stadium, Friday, August 26, 2022, in Las Vegas, Nev.
Raiders alumnus Kirk Morrison during the Las Vegas Raiders' preseason home game against the New England Patriots at Allegiant Stadium, Friday, August 26, 2022, in Las Vegas, Nev.
Raiders alumnus Kirk Morrison during a town hall meeting at the Las Vegas Raiders Headquarters.
Raiders alumnus Kirk Morrison signs autographs for fans at an event for Boyd Gaming at The Orleans.
Raiders alumnus Kirk Morrison during the final round of the 2024 Raiderettes Auditions at Allegiant Stadium.
Raiders alumnus Kirk Morrison during an event for Ticketmaster at Intermountain Health Performance Center.
Raiders alumnus Kirk Morrison before the start of the final round of the 2025 Raiderettes Auditions at Allegiant Stadium.
