2023 DB AJ Harris' adding one big offer after another
On February 2, Kansas offered AJ Harris. It was offer no. 1 for the 6-foot-3, 185 pound sophomore at Glenwood School in Phenix City (Ala.).
On Friday, Maryland and Notre Dame offered, and in less than a month, Harris has been offered by 19 schools.
"Things have really picked up and I have had days where I got two and three offers, so it has been a lot of fun so far," said Harris. "It has been pretty crazy with the offers coming in and so many coaches trying to build relationships, but it really feels good to know that coaches notice me, my work ethic and what kind of player I am.
"It has really all been a blessing for me. I am having fun with it all right now."
Harris is a 2023 prospect, so college coaches cannot call him directly yet. That doesn't mean Harris hasn't been spending a lot of time on the phone. He is staying in regular contact with a long list of schools.
"It is all about building relationships over the phone right now with visits still on hold until the summer. I am in contact with lot of schools right now. Boston College, Arizona State, Auburn, Georgia, Michigan State, Arkansas, Michigan, Georgia Tech, Kansas, Kansas State and some others have shown a lot of love and stayed in good contact.
"I am just getting to know coaches right now, building relationships, and I am doing that with a lot of schools."
He is talking to a lot of assistant coaches daily, but earlier in the week, he talked to Lincoln Riley for the first time. The head coach at Oklahoma made a strong first impression.
"Coach Riley was just different," said Harris. "A lot of coaches tell recruits what they want to hear, and things like that, but coach Riley was not like that. He just wants me to visit, see things for myself, and go from there. He thinks I will like it and be blown away, so he wasn't talking it up or anything like that.
"He was just different, and my conversation with him was amazing. I usually talk to the defensive coaches, and I like them too, but coach Riley really impressed me."
The Sooners are "up there" on Harris' list, and due to connections with coaches, a handful of other programs sit in a pretty good position early on.
"Georgia, Michigan and Michigan State are some of my top schools for sure.
"I like coach Barnett a lot at Michigan State. We have a great relationship, we have talked a lot and we just have a good bond. Coach Mo (Maurice Linguist) at Michigan is a great coach with NFL experience, so I really like him, and what he knows about the game.
"Georgia is a school I grew up going to camp at each summer, so I know a lot about Georgia, and I know a lot about the coaches. I have been to games at Georgia, so they have always been one of my top schools."
Arkansas and Mississippi State are two other SEC schools that have done a good job early recruiting Harris. He mentioned the schools in Fayetteville and Starkville as ones he enjoys talking to on a regular basis.
He looks forward to learning more about the Terrapins and Irish as well now that both have offered.
"I really liked the energy of the Notre Dame coaches when they offered, and Maryland came in strong too," said Harris. "I talked to coach Freeman and coach Mickens from Notre Dame, and I liked them both. They wanted to offer me as a wide receiver about a week ago, but they knew I liked defense, so they watched my film and offered as a cornerback.
"Maryland came at me different, and they talked about being different. They talked about how all the four and five-stars go to schools like Alabama and Georgia, so why couldn't I be different? I thought they made some good points, and I liked what they had to say."
Harris is not to the point where he is seriously thinking about commitment yet, and his recruitment is really going at a high level with offers coming in at a high level, but he does have an idea when he would like to make his decision.
"I really want to visit schools, and I am hoping to start doing that this summer, so if that happens, then I think I will commit after my junior season. If visits get pushed back again, and I just get that feeling over the phone with a school, then I could commit sooner, but right now, I am thinking right after my junior season.
"I really want to get out, find out more about schools, and be able to see different schools before I commit. But at the same time, I would like to go ahead commit sooner than wait too late in the process."