Former VT, Mercer OL John Harris commits to UCF as a transfer
John Harris, an offensive lineman who has played at Virginia Tech and Mercer, announced Sunday he will finish his career at UCF.
The former Hoschton (Ga.) Mill Creek standout initially signed with the Hokies in the Class of 2018 and appeared in a few games his first season while maintaining his redshirt. He broke into the two-deep as a redshirt freshman in 2019, starting one game and playing in four others while rotating between guard and center.
Harris then transferred to Mercer where he became a full-time starter and All-Conference player the past two seasons.
Set to graduate later this spring, Harris hit the NCAA Transfer Portal in search of a new opportunity. UCF was the perfect fit.
"With recruiting, you never know where coaches are going to end up," Harris told UCFSports.com. "I knew Coach (Herb) Hand and Coach (Gus) Malzahn when they were at Auburn because they recruited me back in high school. When I got in the portal, I reached out and sent a cut-up of my film. They loved it. They offered, I want to say a few days after I was in the portal. It happened pretty quickly. I went down there on a visit in late January, early February and actually committed then."
Harris decided to go public with his decision on Sunday after visiting again this weekend.
"A big reason why I chose UCF was Coach Hand," Harris said. "I had a teammate from high school (Kaleb Kim) who played for him at Auburn. I talked to him and he said he was a great guy. You always knew where you stood with him. That's one thing I was happy to hear about was clarity. That was a big thing. The facilities at UCF are top notch. Also, the NIL stuff they're doing. They're really taking advantage of it and helping the players out with getting NIL opportunities. That was a big plus. I'm also excited about coming from a small town to the city of Orlando. Getting back to that big school feel."
Matt Lee showed him around during his first visit and he got more acquainted with the guys this past weekend.
"They were all super nice, so that was good to see," Harris said. "You never know how it's gonna be when you're a transfer coming in. Going to the practice on Saturday made me feel more part of the team. It felt good to be around the guys and going to meetings."
Harris says he's hoping to come down every weekend until the spring game. UCF is looking for him to compete for one of the interior line spots. He was a left guard at Mercer.
"One thing I'm pretty gifted at is my feet," Harris said. "I have really quick feet. I'm about to move in space pretty well. I'm pretty athletic as a guard. We did a lot of pulling and getting out in space here at Mercer. That was something Coach Hand really liked about me, how quick I was and how I was able to pull. We played Alabama in our first game this past year and he said he watched that film. You can't go up against better competition than Alabama and I did really well in that game. I think that was pretty key for me."
According to PFF, Harris graded a solid 65.9 against the Crimson Tide, including an 82.8 pass blocking grade.
Harris plans to arrive at UCF in early June. He will two seasons of eligibility remaining.
"I think we're gonna be a dark horse coming up this season," Harris said. "Cincinnati paved the way for the American to get to the Playoffs. UCF is headed to the Power Five anyway, going to the Big 12. I'm really excited. I think we're gonna be really good this year."
