The first piece to a new-look California Redwoods offense is locked in as the team signed attackman Jackson Morrill through the 2026 season.

California head coach and general manager Nat St. Laurent said he was fond of Morrill coming out of the 2021 College Draft but didn’t have much room at the attack position at the time. Since then, he’s played against Morrill and followed his career and was happy to finally add him to the Redwoods.

“He had a great run with the Chrome,” St. Laurent said. “We were looking for an attackman that wouldn’t turn the ball over. I think Jackson is one of the higher IQs I’ve seen in a while at that position. He’s extremely selfless and has no ego. I love the fact that he can play at X, he can play the wing, he just makes great decisions with the ball.”

Morrill was a fourth-round pick by the Chrome in the very deep 2021 College Draft. He played for the Chrome for almost three full seasons, tallying more than 20 points twice. While he committed 22 turnovers his rookie season, he cut that number down to 11 in each of the next two years. 

In 2023, with the Chrome out of playoff contention, Morrill was traded to the Whipsnakes at the trade deadline. The following year, he scored seven points in three games mostly coming out of the box before being traded at the deadline again, this time to the Utah Archers.

Morrill was excited to have more control and pick where he wanted to play this offseason, and his conversations with St. Laurent got him excited about the prospects for the 2025 season.

“That was really the opportunity I was looking for, the chance to fight for a spot, to play in everyday lineups,” he said. “One of the things that excited me talking to Coach Nat was the offense emphasizing being a bit more focused on ball movement and a bit more focused on selfless play this coming year. That’s where I thrive.”

Morrill already has strong relationships with some of his new teammates. He played with TD Ierlan at both Denver and Yale, and he played with Chris Fake and Brian Tevlin at Yale. He said he knows how hard those three work in the offseason, and he said they are the types of players he wants to surround himself with. 

It’s that kind of effort Morrill believes will help turn the team’s fortunes around. He was with the Chrome when they went from the worst record in the league in 2021 to the second seed in the playoffs (and a berth in the inaugural Championship Series) in the 2022 season.

“You can go from bad to great really quickly,” he said.

As the Redwoods look to bounce back after a disappointing 3-7 season – the first in organization history without an appearance in the playoffs – and improve an offense that finished seventh in the PLL in scores and assists, Morrill was a player St. Laurent identified as a target very early in the process. He is confident that Morrill will produce like he did in his first few seasons as a pro.

“He’s been itching to get a chance,” St. Laurent said. “We’re certainly more than willing to give him an opportunity. I couldn’t be more excited to have him with us.”