By Josh Moon, Montgomery Advertiser
Maurice Harris admits that he doesn't read newspapers and tries to stay away from local news on TV and the Internet. He's found that policy allows him to lead a more peaceful existence as a football coach.
It also led to one of the biggest surprises of his short career.
This past spring, as Harris was sitting at his home in Mississippi, Alabama State head coach Reggie Barlow called. Barlow's first words were, "Well, I guess you know what's going on with (former ASU coach) Charlie Coe."
Harris, of course, had no clue. He knew nothing of Coe's departure to the NFL or of Barlow's hiring as interim head coach.
What he would soon find out, though, is that Barlow, who worked for a season with Harris in 2005 at ASU and was the Hornets' new head coach, needed an offensive coordinator. And Harris, who worked at ASU for two years before leaving in 2006 to become the director of football operations at Ole Miss, was at the top of Barlow's list.
Q So, any hesitation in making the decision to return?
A None whatsoever. I liked my job at Ole Miss, but it wasn't coaching. They gave me a fancy title, but I was just the operations guy. On Saturdays, I felt handcuffed. It was so frustrating. I wanted so much to get back into the coaching side of this, and Reggie gave me that chance. Working with him was a draw as well.
Why is that? I mean, you were a high school guy in Memphis before coming to ASU in 2004. Reggie grew up and played here. You two only knew one another for a season. How did such a quick bond form?
I think it has to do with our personalities and our philosophies. We're basically the same. We're laid back, easy to talk to and nothing gets us riled. We try to stay calm through everything. He believes, like I do, in having only a few plays in your playbook but running a lot of variations. When we worked together, we used to talk a good bit about coaching styles. We just meshed.
Speaking of laid back personalities, there seems to be a lot of those among the offensive coaches. You, Reggie, Richard Moncrief, Derrick Jackson. You guys aren't exactly dominating personalities. Is that a good thing?
Well, I think there's more there than you know. When we're behind closed doors, things can get a little rough sometimes. We don't hold back in those meetings and they can get a little rowdy every now and then. But I'll say this: When the door opens, we're all on the same page. That's what's good about this group. Everyone is a professional. Everyone shows respect to each other. Everyone listens to each other. That's important to have, I think. And I think that attitude starts at the top.
You offensive guys seemed to have meshed really quickly. Why is that?
I think a lot of it has to do with what I said about listening to the other coaches. We don't have that overbearing person on the staff. Now, I'm going to have the final say on offense, but I'm also going to listen to the other coaches. And if those other coaches feel passionately about an idea, you better believe that I'm going to consider it.
This is a young group, though. Do you feel like you're hamstrung sometimes because you don't have an experienced coach to bounce ideas off of?
No. If I need help, I have people I can call. I've made a lot of friends in this business in a short time and I know there are several I can call if I ever need a little help. That's what this business is about -- developing relationships. But really, that hasn't been a problem.
What's the key to the season offensively?
The passing game. Everyone knows that Jay Peck can run the football. Everyone knows that we're going to try and run the football. We've got to develop enough of a passing game to keep defenses from stacking the line on us. If we do that, we'll be OK.
Is Alex Engram better under your offense?
I think so. Alex has really worked hard and really studied. I don't think you can work like that and not be better.
Describe your offensive philosophy.
Basically, it's to keep it simple. We have just a few plays, but from those few plays, we have a bunch of options and run a variety of different looks. We try and confuse the defense with motion and alignments.
It's almost time for the first one. Any nerves?
I'm anxious. I just want it to get here and get the season started. It seems like it's taken forever.
Maurice Harris admits that he doesn't read newspapers and tries to stay away from local news on TV and the Internet. He's found that policy allows him to lead a more peaceful existence as a football coach.
It also led to one of the biggest surprises of his short career.
This past spring, as Harris was sitting at his home in Mississippi, Alabama State head coach Reggie Barlow called. Barlow's first words were, "Well, I guess you know what's going on with (former ASU coach) Charlie Coe."
Harris, of course, had no clue. He knew nothing of Coe's departure to the NFL or of Barlow's hiring as interim head coach.
What he would soon find out, though, is that Barlow, who worked for a season with Harris in 2005 at ASU and was the Hornets' new head coach, needed an offensive coordinator. And Harris, who worked at ASU for two years before leaving in 2006 to become the director of football operations at Ole Miss, was at the top of Barlow's list.
Q So, any hesitation in making the decision to return?
A None whatsoever. I liked my job at Ole Miss, but it wasn't coaching. They gave me a fancy title, but I was just the operations guy. On Saturdays, I felt handcuffed. It was so frustrating. I wanted so much to get back into the coaching side of this, and Reggie gave me that chance. Working with him was a draw as well.
Why is that? I mean, you were a high school guy in Memphis before coming to ASU in 2004. Reggie grew up and played here. You two only knew one another for a season. How did such a quick bond form?
I think it has to do with our personalities and our philosophies. We're basically the same. We're laid back, easy to talk to and nothing gets us riled. We try to stay calm through everything. He believes, like I do, in having only a few plays in your playbook but running a lot of variations. When we worked together, we used to talk a good bit about coaching styles. We just meshed.
Speaking of laid back personalities, there seems to be a lot of those among the offensive coaches. You, Reggie, Richard Moncrief, Derrick Jackson. You guys aren't exactly dominating personalities. Is that a good thing?
Well, I think there's more there than you know. When we're behind closed doors, things can get a little rough sometimes. We don't hold back in those meetings and they can get a little rowdy every now and then. But I'll say this: When the door opens, we're all on the same page. That's what's good about this group. Everyone is a professional. Everyone shows respect to each other. Everyone listens to each other. That's important to have, I think. And I think that attitude starts at the top.
You offensive guys seemed to have meshed really quickly. Why is that?
I think a lot of it has to do with what I said about listening to the other coaches. We don't have that overbearing person on the staff. Now, I'm going to have the final say on offense, but I'm also going to listen to the other coaches. And if those other coaches feel passionately about an idea, you better believe that I'm going to consider it.
This is a young group, though. Do you feel like you're hamstrung sometimes because you don't have an experienced coach to bounce ideas off of?
No. If I need help, I have people I can call. I've made a lot of friends in this business in a short time and I know there are several I can call if I ever need a little help. That's what this business is about -- developing relationships. But really, that hasn't been a problem.
What's the key to the season offensively?
The passing game. Everyone knows that Jay Peck can run the football. Everyone knows that we're going to try and run the football. We've got to develop enough of a passing game to keep defenses from stacking the line on us. If we do that, we'll be OK.
Is Alex Engram better under your offense?
I think so. Alex has really worked hard and really studied. I don't think you can work like that and not be better.
Describe your offensive philosophy.
Basically, it's to keep it simple. We have just a few plays, but from those few plays, we have a bunch of options and run a variety of different looks. We try and confuse the defense with motion and alignments.
It's almost time for the first one. Any nerves?
I'm anxious. I just want it to get here and get the season started. It seems like it's taken forever.
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