Game 4 Player Spotlight: Mac Harris
GAME 4 MATCHUP: ECU (0-2, 0-1 in AAC) at USF (1-2, 0-1 in AAC)
DAY & TIME: Saturday, 7 p.m.
LOCATION: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa
TV: ESPN+
RADIO: Over the Air: 95.3 WDAE &
Digital: Bulls Unlimited
SERIES: USF leads, 9-1
GAME NOTES: ECU |
USF
By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer
TAMPA, OCT. 10, 2020 – Just one day before his 19
th birthday, USF linebacker
Mac Harris took the field in Cincinnati and made the very first start of his collegiate career at a position pretty much brand new to him before the 2020 season began.
"I've noticed my coaches and my teammates, they don't look at me as a freshman," he said. "You gotta grow up fast."
That's especially true during unprecedented times like the 2020 college football season. Even scout team players sometimes show up on the depth chart and even play significant roles in games for various college football teams.
So, when Harris, a two-way player in high school who shined at safety, made the move to linebacker, he took the situation in stride, saying, "I love it. Bring it on."
"I came in knowing that it was gonna happen at some point. I like to be a versatile person and a versatile player," the former three-star recruit said. "I like to be able do everything. When they moved me in the box, it was kind of like, 'OK, just adapt.'"
Harris, who said he now weighs 217-18 pounds, fits more of the linebacker mold at the Division I level. Planning ahead, he worked hard to become a bruising Bull by bulking up from about 190 during his senior season at The Villages Charter School.
"Before I got here, I gained weight knowing this is college football," he said. "You gotta be a grown man."
Multi-talented Harris got some prep for his new position throughout fall camp by taking all his reps at STAR, a hybrid linebacker/defensive back utilized well in new coordinator
Glenn Spencer's multiple scheme.
After making the switch to his new spot prior to the season opener, Harris has been happy to contribute as a true freshman. He made a combined seven tackles against The Citadel and newly ranked No. 5 Notre Dame, which made his loved ones leap for joy just seeing him on the field.
"It's a blessing for sure. It's exciting to me and it's exciting to my family," he said. "… It's nothing I didn't expect out of myself. I know obviously you gotta work hard. You gotta be prepared when your opportunity comes. I just kept preparing like I was the starting guy."
Starter status came to fruition last Saturday, with numerous linebackers who were either unavailable or banged up heading into the conference opener at now-No. 11 Cincinnati.
Harris made an impact immediately. Using his natural coverage skills on the perimeter, the athletic Bull jumped a running back route and hauled in an interception on the Bearcats' first drive of the game.
"That's when my safety mindset kicked in. It was kind of like bait the quarterback. He ran it, I just snuck up behind (the back) and he threw me one. It was exciting," Harris said. "I wish I had a little more room to try to get a little more yardage after the catch, but it's all good. We'll try to get another one."
Harris' big play started a string of four takeaways by the USF defense that is now tied for ninth nationally with seven turnovers gained this season. Although he still has lots of room to grow, the developing linebacker set a career high with eight tackles in a starting role on the road.
"I tried to turn those nerves into excitement through preparation – being in the film room, going over my playbook constantly," he said. "I'm constantly asking questions to the older guys and Coach Spencer."
'General MacArthur' Has Had Lots of Different Football Assignments
Nicknamed "General MacArthur' by his family,
Mac Harris III has taken command of numerous positions on the football field since he got into the sport at age 6.
Growing up, Harris also tried T-ball, soccer and basketball, but the football field was truly the place for him.
"It was like my sanctuary," he said. "When I'm out there at practice or I'm in the game, I'm at peace."
Harris' mother, Felisha, wasn't initially at peace with her son playing tackle football until she saw him handle things well against kids two years older.
"I was a big kid. I turned 7 and my dad was like, 'All right, he's getting too big.' I didn't even get to play with my age group, I had to play up," Harris said. "She was going crazy, but then she looks out on the field and her baby is not a baby. I'm not getting pushed around too much and she was like, 'Let's go, let's do it.'"
Harris went on to earn varsity letters all four years at The Villages Charter School. His position the first two seasons was mainly wide receiver, with a little wildcat quarterback here and there.
"Junior year, (my coach) was like, 'Come on, Mac. I need you to play quarterback,'" he said. "I played quarterback and then all of the sudden he's like, 'Mac, I need you to play safety.' OK."
On offense, Harris ended up passing for 2,198 yards and 24 touchdowns and rushing for 2,231 yards and 37 touchdowns in his final three prep seasons. On the other side of the ball, he totaled 208 tackles and six interceptions during the time span.
"I fell in love with (defense)," he said. "I fell in love with the contact, fell in love with covering people."
Harris was recruited to play a number of different positions in college, including safety, running back, quarterback and cornerback. Heading into his USF career, he had a choice between offense and defense, and safety was the spot until the recent position switch.
Even with a coaching change prior to arriving on campus, Harris was sold on being a Bull and credits head coach
Jeff Scott sales pitch - just being himself.
"I fell in love with Coach Scott our first meeting. My parents did, I did, everybody did. It was like the things that were preached to me in high school, all my four years, were the same things he preached to me without even knowing who my coaches were," said Harris of Scott's "core values." "The intensity that he brings. The love and the care that he has for his players, it was all the same. So, it was like where else would I go? This is a calling from God."
More About Mac
- LOTS OF MACS IN BIG FAMILY: Mac Harris is the third person to carry his name in his family, although there's five Macs, just two more with slightly different spellings. Harris also has seven sisters and one brother. Six of his sisters are older than him, which was an interesting experience early in his life. "I was the baby. Growing up, it was like, little shower time, cold water," he said with a laugh.
FUTURE CAREER FIELD: Harris has chosen exercise science as his college major. "Physical therapy will be fun to me. I think after I do that for a little while, I want to open up my own facility," he said. Harris became interested in the profession while taking anatomy class and has done lots of research on the career field. "It was just intriguing to me how the body works," he said. "If something is wrong with this, that's why it's causing this." USF's sports medicine department gets no shortage of questions from him these days. "I'm talking to them all the time, even if I don't have to. I'm just picking up on little stuff," he said.- BIG MUSIC GUY: Harris grew up learning how to play the guitar from with his grandfather, Mac. Sr., a super talented musician who once played in bands in Chicago. "The first song granddad taught me was 'Billie Jean,'" said Harris, who also loved playing a video game called Michael Jackson: The Experience. Harris' music taste isn't just pop, it's every genre. "It could vary from a country song to a hip-hop song. It could go from Morgan Wallen to Lil Wayne, to I don't even know," he said. "It's just whatever I'm feeling at the moment, I'm just rolling with it."
About USF Football
The USF football program first took the field in 1997 and completed its 23rd season (20th at the FBS level) in 2019. The Bulls have posted 15 winning seasons, earned 14 All-America selections and 29 first-team all-conference selections and has seen 30 players selected in the NFL Draft. USF has made 10 bowl games appearances (going 6-4 in those games) and posted a program record six straight appearances from 2005-2010. The Bulls most recently made four straight bowl appearances from 2015-18 and posted back-to-back 10-win seasons in 2016 and 2017, logging a program-record 11-2 mark in 2016 while finishing both seasons ranked in the Top 25. USF spent a program record 20 straight weeks ranked in the Top 25 during the 2016 and 2017 seasons and reached as high as No. 2 in the national rankings during the 2007 season.
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