Saints defensive tackle
Orien Harris making presence felt
Aug/21/08 07:49 AM Filed in:
Orien Harris
Saints defensive tackle Orien
Harris has quickly made himself known among his
coaches and front-office personnel, putting
together statistics that even he did not think he
would have through two preseason games.
Harris, a 25-year-old who was signed by the Saints in
December, has 11 solo tackles -- best on the team --
and a sack this preseason.
"He's been one of those guys that's been durable,"
Saints Coach Sean Payton said. "He's been steady. He's
a try-hard guy that gives a lot of effort on each play.
Even today, he made some plays in practice. So he's
caught the attention of a lot of us, the guys on
defense and myself included. He comes to work every
day, and he showed that last week in the game."
Since coming into the league from the Miami (Fla.) in
2006, Harris has played in two games, both for
Cleveland in his first season. But Harris figures to
find more playing time this year with the Saints,
especially with other defensive tackles, such as Brian
Young and Hollis Thomas, dealing with injuries.
Harris had six tackles in the Saints' loss to Houston,
just after speaking with his family about the
improvements he wanted to make.
"My mom and my sister, I was telling them I was not
really where I wanted to be as a football player, and
so they heard my sob story and they came back the next
day and they called me," he said. "They were like, 'Ah,
don't be so hard on yourself. Just try to build.' And
that's what I've been trying to do."
(blog.nola.com)