Scott Gleeson

USA TODAY Sports

Former Kentucky and Baylor football coach Guy Morriss is battling Alzheimer’s disease, Lexington WKYT-TV reports.

Dr. Greg Jicha, who has been treating Morriss, told the TV station that the condition could likely be attributed to Morriss’ 15 seasons in the NFL as an offensive lineman — where he played in a Super Bowl and was a Pro Bowler.

"State-of-the-art testing, looking at PET scan imaging of the brain, was able to detect plaques within the brain," said Jicha. "We know that many NFL players and folks who have engaged in careers where repetitive head injury, even mild head injury, can leave them predisposed to a variety of conditions.”

Treatment and drugs have helped Morriss, 66, function better after he had reached a point where he was struggling with day-to-day tasks.

“At first I couldn’t write my name,” Morriss told WKYT. “I would not write my name. I didn’t know my ABCs. I couldn’t do that little rhyme.”

Now, Morriss said, “dressing myself is a win for me. Tying my shoes is a win for me.”

Morris coached for two seasons at Kentucky, going 9-14 in 2001 and 2002, before coaching at Baylor for five seasons, going 18-40. He was on the coaching staff in 2015 at Lexington Christian Academy.

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