Name: Keshaun Harris
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 190 lbs.
High school: Lansing (MI) Waverly
Position: Cornerback
Class: Redshirt senior
Jersey number: #18
Last year: I ranked Harris #78 and said he would be a backup cornerback (LINK). He played in eleven games and made 5 tackles and 1 pass breakup.
TTB Rating: N/A
Harris plays one of the toughest positions in college football to make hay as a walk-on, and that's cornerback. Most guys who are athletic enough to play corner end up with a scholarship somewhere. And the corners at Big Ten and SEC programs are just such outstanding athletes that it's tough to overcome them. So even though Harris is a walk-on, the fact that he has played cornerback in ten games over the past two seasons is a pretty impressive feat, even if the playing time came mostly in blowouts.
Harris had a couple nice plays in the 2023 spring game and seems closer to significant playing time than at any other point in his career. Will Johnson mans one corner spot, but the other spot is up in the air. Harris is unlikely to start, but he could be part of the rotation. Also, if Mike Sainristil ends up playing outside corner, Harris could potentially play in the slot a little bit. Harris is also a decent tackler and a physical player, so he brings the capability to play special teams. I expect to see him play a little bit more this fall, and hopefully he can make some memorable plays to finish out his career (unless he decides to come back for a sixth year in 2024).
Prediction: Backup cornerback and special teamer
Nice one. I was overlooking him.
ReplyDeleteNever heard of him. Surprising that a #2 CB is tough to come by for a back-to-back playoff team
ReplyDeleteNeed to spread some of that OL fortune out
I wonder how much of our concern is just relative to the rest of the team. If the rest of the team is 10/10 (which it's not, but just for this exercise), but the #2 cornerback is 9/10, then it seems concerning because we have to be concerned about something.
DeleteIn other years, I wonder if there would have been so much talk about a #2 cornerback with so many seemingly talented guys vying for the spot. After all, there's a 4-star freshman, a 4-star sophomore, a few 3-stars, a transfer with a few years of starting experience, etc. Back in 2015 or so, we probably would have been excited about these options and Michigan still put some good corners out there between Channing Stribling and Jeremy Clark.
In other words, I guess this is what they call a First World Problem.
The addition of Wallace was MASSIVE imo. Talent is one thing but the total lack of experience was another. Without Wallace it was a classic case of walk-ons, position switches, and true freshman at CB2. A big old flashing red trouble sign.
DeleteThe situation in 2015 was far more promising. When, besides Lewis, we had Clark (who had already started at safety the year before), Stribling (who was a junior with some decent backup experience), and Jabril Peppers available, before you even got to any of the younger guys. After that you can play the stars game with 4-star recruits like Terry Richardson and Freddy Canteen behind the top 3 of 4 guys. Plus Brandon Watson. It was so stocked that Wayne Lyons was moved to safety.
I think the concern at corner in 2023 WAS entirely legit. Now that Wallace is here that is mitigated. I think until we see him play the questions will remain to some degree.
@thunder, your logic is sound. But I am a fantastic, and as such choose to panic following walker's abuse at the work of a walk-on, whose goal is #5 or #6 WR
Delete@ Lank 8:03 p.m.
DeleteGeorgia's two projected cornerbacks - a sophomore and a junior - have the following combined career statistics:
59 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 0.5 sacks, 1 interception, 8 pass breakups
Will Johnson, a sophomore, has:
27 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 3 interceptions, 3 pass breakups
My point is simply that many other schools don't have a ton of returning production at cornerback. Successful draft-eligible players often leave for the NFL, and you're left with unproven players, essentially playing the star game. Luckily, cornerback is one of the easier positions to evaluate by star ranking, so 4-star corners are more likely to be good than 4-stars at many other positions. So if you have talent there, you're probably going to be okay.
Georgia's cb room is stacked and experienced. They are far better off than Michigan.
Deletehttps://247sports.com/college/georgia/longformarticle/georgia-bulldogs-spring-practice-preview-cornerback-star-offer-plenty-of-options-206150494/
I don't think we're in bad shape but that's mostly due to Wallace filling in after Johnson and Sainristil.
If our 4th cb, who we need, is no better than our 7th we're looking at a liability against osu.
If we're trying to be better than Georgia and not repeat tcu debacle this is exactly the type of difference that matters when it matters.