Interview With 3-Time National Champion And Former Miami Hurricane Kelvin Harris

· What would you say was the biggest difference between Jimmy Johnson and Dennis Erickson?

Jimmy was a beast. He wasn't a micromanager, he hired great assistants & let them do their jobs. He ran special teams & was cutthroat but was great with the players letting us be us. Both him & Coach Erickson let us be us as long as we took care of business. Erickson brought an offensive system that was ahead of its time. The offense you see today is based on the 1-Back offense he ran. We were doing all of this in 89, 90, 91! Erickson was more laid back. To me though, his greatest strength was his lack of ego & listening to us & not trying to change things that didn’t need to be changed.

· Best defensive lineman you went up against while at Miami?

Russell Maryland. Strength, power, quickness. He played the run & could pass rush as well, which is why he was the #1 pick in the 1991 NFL Draft.

· What are your thoughts on Manny Diaz so far?

Manny has done a great job so far. Everyone, players, alumni ,boosters & fans as well as recruits have bought in, now he has to win and win big! So far he has done a good job of blending the past & the present to make the future bright.

· Thoughts on the quarterback situation?

I personally think N’Kosi Perry, talent wise, is our best option but we’ll see if he does well this off-season. I think after last year he has to show he wants to be the QB. I think we can run Dan Enos’ full offense with him. But everyone else can’t want it more than he does.

Overall at the position, whoever the QB is if he can make good decisions and not turn the ball over, as well as convert on 3rd-downs, with our defense & the way our schedule lays out, we are a national championship contender!

· What’s one thing you think Miami has gone away from in the past several years that you’d like to see brought back?

The one thing that the majority of the alumni want to see is us (former players) back on the sidelines during games. The excuse of the ovation don’t hold water anymore & it’s embarrassing to see FSU with players on the sideline & we only have 1 or 2 people. This is part of the more of the program. Right now the only former players supposedly allowed on the sidelines are Ring of Honor inductees & certain current NFL players.

· You’re a former offensive lineman, what do you think of new OL coach Butch Barry?

I think Coach Barry is an asset because he is coming from the NFL & recruits know what he is teaching NFL techniques. I like how he is recruiting O Linemen. I think his time with the Buccaneers will help him devise run schemes & pass protections that will cover up the weaknesses of the O Line.

· Predictions for the Miami-Florida game, and the entire 2019 season.

I think the Florida game is a toss up. It will depend on QB play & who wins the turnover battle. The first-half will be rough for us because their D Coordinator will blitz from all angles and all over the field. It Weill take a half to figure out where they’re coming from & make the proper adjustments. On the flipside, Florida’s O Line is in worse shape than ours. They have a great group of WR’s, but they don’t look like they can pass protect. Mullen will use the run game, bubble screens & a lot of misdirection to keep us from pinning our ears back & going after Feleipe Franks. I think we win maybe like say 27-17.

As for the season, win or lose against Florida, I expect us to win the Coastal. We matchup with this Clemson team, but in order for us to win our secondary will have to play flawless.