February 3, 2026 — Erika Morris has many roles at South Cobb High School: teacher, coach, mentor, and organizer, to name but a few. She is a familiar face to anyone who's ever attended any event at the school. Her constant smile and positivity brighten every room and situation. And since last year, students at South Cobb have taken to repeating her catchphrase, when they see her: "LEGOOOO."
Known as "Coach E" to most in the school, Morris applied her endless energy and tireless work ethic to 365 Days of LEGO Builds in 2025. She documented her year-long journey with the plastic bricks on social media and became something of a legend in the worldwide LEGO community. She began each day's video by saying "LEGOOOO" as a play on "Let's Go" and it has now become synonymous with her. It makes sense in more ways than one since Coach E is a builder by nature.
"I love what I do," Coach E said. "And a lot of what I do outside of teaching is because I love this school. The most rewarding part of education for me is seeing growth. Not just grades, but watching students go from freshmen to seniors and then walk across that stage. I always want to see our students succeed."
Coach E is a proud graduate of South Cobb herself. Seven years ago, she returned to the school as a community coach. When the opportunity to become a teacher at the school arose, she quickly applied and got the job. She teaches health and physical education, serves as a senior sponsor, oversees senior night events for all athletic programs, and was also involved with organizing homecoming and prom. She wants to invest in the place that built her.
“I just want to be someone who lives each day to the fullest and makes a difference wherever I go,” she said.
A Builder of Community
Coach E earned her undergraduate degree in Physical Education, and continued on to receive a master’s degree in Sports Management. She spent nearly a decade working for a leadership and fitness fundraising company, organizing events like fun runs and color battles for middle schools across Cobb County. It was during this time that she met current South Cobb Principal, Tommy Perry, who was then an Assistant Principal at Dickerson Middle School.
"She's amazing!" Principal Perry said with a smile. "She's a teacher, a coach, she leads school pep rallies, she's at all our events, and she's a South Cobb alum! Coach E has helped to define what South Cobb is today in so many ways."
Education is a natural fit now, but it wasn’t always Coach E's plan. She entered college as a Mass Communications major before a conversation with her mother changed her trajectory.
"She told me I was really good with kids," Coach E recalled. "So I switched into education as an undergrad just to see."
Others also confirmed her mother's advice, and as Coach E continued to work in sports and schools with the fundraising company, her gifting also became obvious to her.
"Everybody kept telling me, 'You should be a teacher,'" she said. "So I transferred my certification and started applying. By then, Mr. Perry was principal here, and now here I am."
Her commitment to the South Cobb community is deeply personal. Many of her students are children of former classmates and neighbors she has known for years.
"It's one big family," she said. "Teaching their kids is helping me build connections with the parents and getting to know them better."
A former multi-sport athlete herself, Coach E played basketball, volleyball, track, and even served as the mascot during her senior year. In addition to basketball, she also began coaching the Eagle Flag Football team as an assistant this year.
She enjoys coaching because it allows her to combine athletics with mentorship. Her own leadership philosophy was shaped by former South Cobb coaches and teachers, as well as legendary Tennessee coach Pat Summitt.
“Coach Summitt was the biggest and most formative influence on me," she said fondly. "Now that I’m in that role, I make sure I invest that same amount of time into my students."
365 Days of Builds
It might be assumed that Coach E’s love for LEGO sets began when she was young, but surprisingly, it began as an adult, around ten years ago.
"It wasn’t something I did as a kid," she said. "I just randomly bought one and had fun putting it together."
That fun was rekindled during Christmas break in 2024, when her wife gifted her another LEGO set. Coach E built it in eight hours and set a course for the coming year.
"I was like, 'Huh, I wonder if I could build a LEGO set every day?' Monique agreed I should try it, and so, I did!" Coach E said about how the LEGO Challenge began.
For 365 consecutive days, Coach E documented a LEGO set build every day, often while repping South Cobb gear. Her 365 Days of LEGO Builds is, as far as she knows, the first of its kind. She said that another builder overseas attempted it but stopped on day 212. Coach E did not stop and completed her challenge, even building during her 17-day honeymoon trip to Europe.
Over time, her building speed and skill improved, and the process became almost intuitive. Coach E describes it as "therapeutic." "Building bricks helps to clear my mind," she said. "When I’m building, I’m not thinking about games, lesson plans, or stress. It’s just me, the bricks, and music."
The reaction from students at school was one of the most surprising and enjoyable parts of the experience. "They’d see me in the hallway and say, 'Coach E, LEGOOOO!'" she laughed.
"But, it also started conversations with students I didn't know," she continued. "They’d tell me, 'I like LEGO too, but I didn’t think it was cool.' Now it is."
FOX 5 even came to Coach E's house near the end of 2025 to report on her amazing accomplishment. You can watch that segment here.
Coach E said the Challenge helped her learn time management and planning as she balanced teaching, coaching, and LEGO builds each day. "I was strategic," she said. "I kept weekday builds under 1,000 pieces and saved bigger sets for the weekends."
Giving Back What She's Built
Now that the Challenge is over, Coach E is breaking down nearly two-thirds of her LEGO sets and donating them to children in need.
"LEGO is expensive," she said. "I want kids in this community to have access to it—especially those who might not otherwise."
She kept the instructions and carefully repackaged the pieces in Ziplock bags, hoping to introduce more young people to a creative outlet that has brought her so much joy.
With all she’s already accomplished, Coach E is just getting started. She’s even launching a new podcast, Conversations with Sweetie Bricks, that will debut later this month. It will feature conversations with fellow LEGO builders and first-timers alike—using bricks as a backdrop for deeper discussions about life, just as she did on several of her daily build videos.
"I really enjoyed that part. I had people actually build with me while I was doing the Challenge. We had some great conversations, and so I thought maybe I should take this and turn it into a podcast," she explained about how the idea began.
Judging by the students she’s already inspired, the community she’s strengthened, and the 365 LEGO sets she’s built along the way, Coach E is clearly a builder. She will continue to build at South Cobb one brick, one conversation, one podcast, and one student, at a time.
