CinCityPride Among Those Pushing For Harris
The #CinCityPride movement at Cincinnati has already pulled in four commitments from southwest Ohio in the 2018 class. Two others from central Ohio have also joined.
The members of the #CinCityPride class have also worked on getting others to join. And one common target they’ve set their sights on has been Xenia (OH) three-star wide receiver Meechi Harris.
At this point, Harris is still shopping through each of his 15 offers, of which Kentucky and Purdue were the most recent to join. He took in multiple visits this spring, each of which gave him more perspective. But Harris admits, the Bearcats’ commits continue to push.
“I know them from the recruiting process and it makes a big difference,” Harris said. “Not only can all of us make an impact, but we can do it for our city. I know a couple of them, like Aeneas (Hawkins). I know he talked to Malik (Vann) about me and he called me to go there. I talked to Malik at Ohio State. The tight end (Josh Whyle), the day he committed, he said, ‘This is your turn.’ Ja’von Hicks) said, ‘Come join, we’re all doing it.’ It’s pretty cool.”
Harris visited the nearby Bearcats multiple times this spring. And each visit, he said he took something different away, including from the coaches.
“I like UC, I really do,” Harris said. “I like the coach, Luke Fickell and Coach Joker (Phillips) and Coach (Marcus) Freeman are really nice people. They show they really care and they can take me to the next level. They talk well to me and say to push myself. They text before meets, before practices to say to make myself better. I appreciate everything they’re doing.”
Harris said he and Freeman especially, have a strong bond.
“Coach Freeman was the first coach to recruit me,” Harris said. “Then they left it to Coach Joker and we talk every day. I really like him and everything. I don’t have a top yet, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they made my top list. I really do like it there. I like the surroundings and all.”
Aside from Cincinnati, Harris said he also visited Michigan State, Toledo, Kentucky and Ohio State this spring. One aspect particularly stood out.
“The competition level, when you go visit a Big Ten school then SEC, you can tell the difference in how the game is played,” Harris said. “Every time I hear someone talk, they say the SEC is all run, Big Ten all pass. But you go see why they’re all run or pass. You see why they do what they do. I was shocked how everything fell into place.”
Perhaps surprisingly, Harris said he also liked what he saw with Toledo.
“I like the wide receivers coach,” he said. “He’s a real guy, just so honest. He’ll look you in the eye and tell you, you have to work to get to the next level. He’s not sugar-coating anything. He just says if you go there, he’ll get you to the next level. I just like how he recruits.”
No visits are set right now, but Harris said he wants to get a better look at more schools. He hopes to get to Iowa, Iowa State, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Minnesota and Purdue this summer.
“I really wanna have a good education, see how the coaching staff is,” Harris said. “There’s a lot of different ways I look at things. I want them to be real about everything, not just recruit me to recruit me. Playing time, I don’t care if they throw me in the lineup. I like competition and working for stuff. I wanna know how many they’re offering at the position, how many they already have, too.”
Harris said he’ll continue to take in all the information he gets, including from those on board with the Bearcats. He has a timeframe in mind, but he’s also not rushing anything.
“I’m thinking before football season, I will put out a top five,” Harris said. “It could be a top five or three that I wanna go to and focus on. Those will be the schools that I only want contact with. Then I’ll go from there.”