Drake Harris "never got opportunity" at Michigan
A Detroit News piece on Drake Harris:
https://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/college/2018/08/12/drake-harris-has-high-hopes-western-michigan-never-got-opportunity-shine-michigan/972132002/
I'm accustomed to seeing articles of that type in the other Detroit paper. I found it at least somewhat informative. I doubt that his lack of playing time had to do with "getting an opportunity."
August 13th, 2018 at 6:57 AM ^
Sure, Harbaugh doesn't strike me as the type of guy who would want the best player playing.
August 13th, 2018 at 8:18 AM ^
Sorry, not trying to jack your thread. Well, maybe I am, sorry.
Gerry DiNardo just tweeted saying that BTN will be at Michigan’s football practice tomorrow. He says coverage starts at 5pm eastern.
probably won’t be any great info, because submarine, but it will be good to see some Michigan football in any form! Go Blue!
August 13th, 2018 at 9:48 AM ^
BTN? What's that?
I have Comcast...
August 13th, 2018 at 10:41 AM ^
I have comcast and still have BTN and I live in MD
August 13th, 2018 at 1:18 PM ^
Maryland is in the B1G footprint. Comcast has, for the most part, dropped BTN outside of the footprint.
August 13th, 2018 at 1:10 PM ^
The Comcast giveth, and the Comcast taketh away.
August 13th, 2018 at 2:07 PM ^
Comcast makes up their monopolistic prices with shitty service.
That way the consumer is consistently treated like the plebs they are. Don't let the populace get high and mighty comcast! Next they will want to be able to choose which entertainment they want to consume - we cannot have that! Stay stong. Shut UP! Be happy. The security you have demanded is now mandatory!
August 13th, 2018 at 1:57 PM ^
Sometimes it's not always clear who the best player is or there may be reasons to play certain guys even if they may not be the best: Nolan Ulizio, John O'Korn, several other offensive players that have started for Harbaugh weren't the best players.
It does seem surprising that he didn't get more looks last year given how badly Crawford struggled and how thin the WR corp became after Black went down.
It did seem a little bit like the coaches just decided to get the young guys time and experience (like putting Nico Collins in) which they perhaps felt would be more valuable long term than putting in a late career guy even if he might have been marginally better.
August 13th, 2018 at 7:02 AM ^
You make your own opportunities, nobody will just give you one. I wish Drake well, and wish he'd have had a better career - the promise was extraordinary. It didn't work out, but I hope he's successful in his life and doesn't completely leave the football family.
August 13th, 2018 at 7:04 AM ^
Play better. That simple.
August 13th, 2018 at 12:25 PM ^
At first sight, in one of his last interviews, it could be seen his arms were still skinny rails. I can't see how 3 years of working out would still leave him so skinny. Is it safe to conclude he just didn't apply himself and work hard?
August 13th, 2018 at 12:28 PM ^
Probably not.
August 13th, 2018 at 12:30 PM ^
Do you have a link that talks about how he worked out?
August 13th, 2018 at 1:18 PM ^
I think the point is that calling out his work ethic makes no sense. It's possible that he tried his best and it just didn't happen.
August 13th, 2018 at 1:34 PM ^
I'm just asking for proof he tried his best. He may have. He may have tried so hard he sweated blood.
August 13th, 2018 at 3:04 PM ^
If we're doing that, I wouldnt mind seeing proof that you're not an idiot.
August 13th, 2018 at 7:14 AM ^
Does this qualify for the bulletin board in week 2? I definitely want to see how he does against our corners..
August 13th, 2018 at 7:15 AM ^
wasn't he constantly injured??
August 13th, 2018 at 7:18 AM ^
Exactly. Drake is right, he "never got an opportunity" because he was always sidelined with an injury. Had nothing to do with the coaching staff.
August 13th, 2018 at 9:50 AM ^
Thomas Rawls "never got an opportunity" either.
Maybe Drake can follow his example and get paid in Sundays.
August 13th, 2018 at 10:30 AM ^
I'm still trying to figure out what the deal was with Rawls. Every Spring, he cornered all the praise. Every Fall, he was the spotlight of attention. Every game, he just sat on the bench. Then BOOM! He transferred straight to the NFL. Some coach had it out for him is all I can figure... Talk about the guy that wasn't given an opportunity? Yeah, you make your own oppy's, but at some point, somebody has to get you in the game when its been earned. And I always thought Rawls looked really good when he was in.
August 13th, 2018 at 10:58 AM ^
He was kind of a scumbag. Hoke didn't like him because of his off the field behavior and that is why his snaps were limited.
August 13th, 2018 at 11:24 AM ^
Can umbig11 confirm this? First I've heard of it.
August 13th, 2018 at 11:27 AM ^
I don't know about his time at Michigan, but in Mt P he was involved in stealing the purse of an old lady at the casino. Never should have played a down as a chip. He ratted out his friends and wasn't officially charged so CMU's coach said he was good to go.
August 13th, 2018 at 12:57 PM ^
Just this weekend when I was checking the status of where M alumni in the NFL are currently listed, I saw that Rawls is now with the Jets. The "news" note for Rawls on what I think was the CBSSports roster link, suggested he was only there while someone else was injured & didn't think he'd get much playing time later, mentioning that he had a great first year at Seattle but showed very little his next two years, and seemed to imply his limited playing time wasn't just because of injuries. I'm at work and can't get the exact quote, so who knows.
August 13th, 2018 at 10:53 AM ^
I think he'd rather get paid in dollars....
Out of curiosity, what country uses sunday as it's currency?
August 13th, 2018 at 11:31 AM ^
Where in the article did he say anything about the coaching staff?
August 13th, 2018 at 8:02 AM ^
Yes..unfortunately. Poor kid looked most promising.
It think the title should have said “never seized opportunity.”
August 13th, 2018 at 10:21 AM ^
And also couldn't gain the requisite weight to play college WR.
August 13th, 2018 at 11:45 AM ^
It’s hard to play WR when you weigh 148.
August 13th, 2018 at 12:29 PM ^
Gaining weight isn't so hard.
Maybe the MAC will have lower expectations.
August 13th, 2018 at 7:31 AM ^
I'll disagree with you on the Freep comparison, the article just reported the quote from Harris, it didn't seem to draw/infer any conclusions from it.
I had a lot of high hopes for Harris when he committed. Watching that state championship game vs. St.Mary's I thought he was going to be an incredible player here. Hope he does well for WMU.
August 13th, 2018 at 7:41 AM ^
This is not an unusual thing for a kid to say and it does not mean he is saying he was treated unfair. It can mean many things. It could be...He did not get the opportunity to play because he did not win the job. He did not get the opportunity because when he did play the ball was overthrown. Whatever the reason I did not read this as a complaint at the coaches or the program.
The kid has some awesome skill sets. I hope he has a great season except for one game.
August 13th, 2018 at 10:07 AM ^
This is the best take. He's probably saying he can ball and just didn't get the chance to prove this. This could be for a variety of reasons, his health, his throws from the QBs. I highly doubt the coaching staff didn't want the best players on the field. His situation didn't give him a chance to show what he can do, not necessarily the coaching staff.
August 13th, 2018 at 12:33 PM ^
He was given plenty of opportunity, on both offense, and defense.
August 13th, 2018 at 7:37 AM ^
"Drake Harris never gave himself an opportunity" is more like it.
August 13th, 2018 at 7:45 AM ^
Drake Harris' hamstrings never gave him the opportunity is even better
August 13th, 2018 at 9:37 AM ^
Shhh. Do not spook the hamstring
August 13th, 2018 at 12:35 PM ^
In the article he says:
"...I really wasn’t banged up too much,” said Harris. “My true freshman year I was, but after that I was pretty healthy..."
We will see if his hamstrings are an issue at Western.
August 13th, 2018 at 7:55 AM ^
His hamstring injury's kept him from developing. It was just an unlucky situation for him
August 13th, 2018 at 8:06 AM ^
Clickable Link Although he entered Michigan with high expectations, due to his accomplishments during his high school career in football and basketball*, in three seasons at Michigan, Drake Harris had only nine receptions for a total of 60 yards.
If, as the linked article states, he'll be the number one passing option in Western Michigan's uptempo offense, then he'll have an opportunity to equal or exceed his college career's receptions and yardage totals just in Western Michigan's opening game at home against Syracuse (another uptempo offense) on August 31.
* There was a time last September when Drake Harris was considering a move to the Michigan basketball team. LINK
August 13th, 2018 at 8:10 AM ^
Good thing Western Michigan is overflowing with opportunities. Good luck, Drake.
August 13th, 2018 at 8:16 AM ^
Well, it's difficult to find opportunities when you're injured a significant portion of the time, first and foremost, and I have to think that was something that put him behind in development and therefore in chances to get to the field.
I don't think he is saying that he was treated unfairly - for various reasons, injury being a significant one, he simply didn't get the opportunity to play significant minutes.
August 13th, 2018 at 8:25 AM ^
He didn't seem to fill out or add enough weight either.
August 13th, 2018 at 8:40 AM ^
He seems like a good kid. He won’t even be All-MAC this year. He will play in less than ten games this season. I hope his Michigan degree opens doors this winter.
August 13th, 2018 at 9:05 AM ^
He's a 20-something kid who wants a chance to make his dream happen. I have no problem with that at all, wish him the best, hope he crushes it at WMU. He didn't get a chance to make it happen in Ann Arbor, maybe Kalamazoo will be a better fit.
August 13th, 2018 at 9:09 AM ^
I bet the Sparties are all loving that article right now.
August 13th, 2018 at 9:32 AM ^
Why? Did Reading Comprehension finally get added to the MSU curriculum?
August 13th, 2018 at 9:20 AM ^
Injury risk maybe?
August 13th, 2018 at 9:29 AM ^
I thought his hamstrings never gave him a chance.