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The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 07/27/08
If you're looking for a prototype wide receiver, you would be hard pressed to do better than Georgia's Kenneth Harris. He's long and strong, 6 feet, 3 inches tall and 215 pounds, or 20 pounds heavier than when he showed up from Cherryville, N.C., as a true freshman in 2004. None of it is fat, as evidenced by his performances this offseason in the Bulldogs' infamous mat drills, which "he dominated," according to strength coach Dave Van Halanger.
Georgia can only hope that supreme conditioning translates to production on the football field. To date, it has not. After catching 26 passes for an average 20 yards apiece his first two seasons, Harris caught just four balls for 52 yards last year. But he was named "Best All-Around Offensive Player" after spring practice and is slated to start this fall. Harris sat down recently for a conversation with the AJC's Chip Towers for the series we call "Five Questions."
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Q: So, Kenneth, you've been around a while now. Is there anything about you the average Georgia fan might not know?
A: Well, in my off time I like to play golf. I love it. I shot a 98 the other day but my best score ever is an 82. And I like listening to country music. I like a little Toby Keith, Kenny Chesney, Phil Vassar. I guess my roommate Brannan Southerland has rubbed off on me a little bit.
Q: What's it like being a North Carolina guy in Georgia?
A: I was a basketball guy coming out of high school. All I knew growing up was Carolina basketball, Duke basketball, N.C. State. All of the sudden I'm getting recruited by Georgia and I was all about Georgia football. I started learning about Herschel Walker and Lindsay Scott and all these big-time players I had never heard of before. It's been a great experience and I'm glad to be a part of it.
Q: By my count there are at least a dozen of you wideouts competing for playing time before A.J. Green and Tavarres King joined the fold. What's that like?
A. There's a lot of camaraderie there. There's a lot of good, healthy competition as well, just like at any other position. We've got a lot of guys that can play and that push each other for playing time and that's going to make all of us step our game up to a different level. We're going to produce better on the field for Matthew [Stafford] this year. You hope everybody can play but you know only the best ones are going to be on the field.
Q: That's a lot of people. Using a yearbook superlatives format, tell me which players would earn what distinction?
A. Well, Class Clown, that'd have to be Demiko Goodman. I guess Mohamed [Massaquoi] would have to be Most Popular. Up and comers, I'd have to say A.J. and T.K. They're going to be real good, going to turn some heads. Best Looking? I'm not going there.
Q. I'm sure last season wasn't what you had hoped for as far as production. Do you have some personal goals for your senior year?
A: Not really. I just want to go out each Saturday, take it one game at a time, do the best that I can and hopefully we'll win every game. Personally, of course I want it to be a big year for me. I came out this year and had a good spring from mat drills on and a good summer and I just want to continue that. But it's a team game and it's about winning games.
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