University of Georgia Athletics
Photo by: Perry McIntyre Jr.
Quick Chat: Jackson Harris
October 03, 2017 | Football, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
UGAAA Staff Writer
Georgia tight end Jackson Harris lights up a bit when he gets started talking about his major, mechanical engineering. He has roughly the same look when he talks about chicken tenders.
The 6-foot-6 junior from Columbia, Tenn., is in the middle of a memorable, home state two-game stretch. Columbia is a town of roughly 35,000, located about 45 miles south of Nashville and three hours from Knoxville, where Georgia was last Saturday, throttling Tennessee 41-0. The No. 5-ranked Bulldogs are at Vanderbilt this week, and Harris will no doubt see a lot of familiar faces in the crowd in his last visit to Commodore Stadium in the red and black.
On Monday, Harris sat down for a Quick Chat about his major, taking things apart and sometimes putting them back together, those chicken fingers, his room at home and more. Here's some of what he had to say:
Frierson: For starters, what is mechanical engineering? It's one of those things I've heard plenty of times but couldn't really tell you what it is.
Harris: The simplest way to understand it is, mechanical is the definition of anything that moves. It's literally as broad as that; it can be anything from a pen, like clicking a pen, or a huge construction project. It's definitely very broad and engineering is all the technicality behind it.
Frierson: What drew you to that and where do you want to go with it?
Harris: I've just always been a big math guy, just always enjoyed it. Growing up I was a big LEGOs fan and I loved building stuff. I love seeing how things work and understanding how everything works together as one, whatever it may be.
I've always had that passion — both my brothers are engineers — and that's definitely part of it. It's something I never doubted (my interest in) and that's why I came here and that's what I'm pursuing. From here, I'm kind of keeping my options open.
There's definitely all different routes (of engineering): my brother, he works at Nissan in Smyrna, Tenn., and I've thought about taking that path and maybe working on automobiles. But I'd also love to work in construction and help build buildings and design them. I'm hoping to get an internship this summer and really see what I like and don't like.
Frierson: As a guy that likes to find out how things work, did you take a lot of things apart as a kid and then struggle to get them back together? Was there one that got you in the most trouble?
Harris: Absolutely, though I don't know that I ever got into too much trouble — I was usually pretty smart about it. I still remember it might have been a speaker or something and remember taking it apart and looking at it, just thinking it was the coolest thing ever. I get done and I have to put it back together, but I didn't know what I was doing. It's still in my room now, in some drawer with a bunch of pieces everywhere.
Frierson: What's something creative you do or that really interests you?
Harris: I just feel like every time I go somewhere, be it a restaurant or when the indoor practice facility was being built, I'd be walking beside it or driving by and the things I studied in my classes I could see being applied to the construction of the building. It was a lot of fun realizing, oh, yeah, I know about that stuff that goes into it that people don't see.
That's just the stuff I love; it fascinates me and I think it's awesome. It's definitely fun to watch stuff like that in real life.
Frierson: If you could travel anywhere in the world and someone else was picking up the tab, where would you like to go?
Harris: This past summer I was fortunate enough to go to the Galapagos Islands with my family, and it was the most unbelievable experience I've ever had. Snorkeling, they've got these huge turtles and it was just unbelievable. And I would go back there in a heartbeat.
We were snorkeling and one moment there's a shark swimming by you and the next there's this huge turtle, like almost the size of me. It's definitely something you can describe unless you're there to see it.
Frierson: How are you with fear in those situations? It is a shark, after all, a pretty serious predator in the water with you.
Harris: At first you feel a little fear, but then it's one of those things — my family has done a good job of taking us places and exposing us to different atmospheres like that. I've had enough of that that I'm kind of used to it. I'm also really thankful for it, because I know a lot of people can't go to the Galapagos Islands in the summer.
It was incredible and I loved it; I just love nature and being able to experience God's creation. It's awesome.
Frierson: Who's the most interesting guy on the team?
Harris: I'm big buddies with Jeb Blazevich and he's a unique guy — I love him to death. I'll definitely put him as the most interesting.
Frierson: Jeb and I have done three of these and we always have a good time. He's a wonderful goofball.
Harris: He knows how to hold himself, how to carry himself, but at the same time he likes to have people laugh and likes to be goofy. ... He's a great guy to have in the locker room and he's a fun friend to have.
Frierson: What movie do you and your buddies quote more than any other?
Harris: I'm a big "Happy Gilmore" guy. I love it, and even talking about Jeb, we'll be doing something and we'll quote it. There's always a movie quote.
Frierson: If you could eat any food every day for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Harris: I've kind of grown out of it a little, but when I was a kid I loved chicken tenders, just chicken tenders and fries. Once we went on a cruise, my family, and they had this buffet, and for 13 meals straight, including breakfast, I ate chicken tenders and fries every single time.
It's something we always laugh about, but it's true: I love chicken tenders and it would probably be my go-to meal.
Frierson: What's a food or dish that if it never crosses your plate again won't upset you at all?
Harris: I'm a pretty healthy guy now, I'm series when it comes to a good diet and all, but I cannot stand turnip greens. Sometimes my mom will make them and ... I love spinach and I'll drink these green spinach smoothies, not a problem at all, but you put turnip greens in front of me and I cannot do it.
Frierson: If football had the equivalent of walk-up music, like in baseball, what would your music be as you jogged onto the field?
Harris: I'd say "Humble and Kind" (by Tim McGraw). It's not really the most motivating song, but it's just a good country song and I love the message behind it and the principles it teaches. There's nothing better than just a good country song to get you fired up.
Frierson: Last one, take me through your bedroom back home. What's in it and what's there that really means a lot to you?
Harris: First off, I have my high school jerseys framed and they mean a lot to me. I tell you, I love high school football and I would do anything to play high school football again. It's one of my favorite things in the world.
So I have that framed, back when we went to state my sophomore year — sad we lost but still, just the memories, I still think of them on a daily basis. I have that and just all your trophies that you accumulate over the years, here and there.
Going back to the LEGOs, I'm a huge LEGO guy, and I have a huge "Star Wars" spaceship that I got when I was probably 8 years old. It was a huge box it came in, I remember, and that was my only birthday present. I built it for maybe three days straight and I have that still in there. It's something I take great pride in; it's still hanging in there, all these years later.
(This Q&A has been lightly edited for length and clarity.)
UGAAA Staff Writer
Georgia tight end Jackson Harris lights up a bit when he gets started talking about his major, mechanical engineering. He has roughly the same look when he talks about chicken tenders.
The 6-foot-6 junior from Columbia, Tenn., is in the middle of a memorable, home state two-game stretch. Columbia is a town of roughly 35,000, located about 45 miles south of Nashville and three hours from Knoxville, where Georgia was last Saturday, throttling Tennessee 41-0. The No. 5-ranked Bulldogs are at Vanderbilt this week, and Harris will no doubt see a lot of familiar faces in the crowd in his last visit to Commodore Stadium in the red and black.
On Monday, Harris sat down for a Quick Chat about his major, taking things apart and sometimes putting them back together, those chicken fingers, his room at home and more. Here's some of what he had to say:
Frierson: For starters, what is mechanical engineering? It's one of those things I've heard plenty of times but couldn't really tell you what it is.
Harris: The simplest way to understand it is, mechanical is the definition of anything that moves. It's literally as broad as that; it can be anything from a pen, like clicking a pen, or a huge construction project. It's definitely very broad and engineering is all the technicality behind it.
Frierson: What drew you to that and where do you want to go with it?
Harris: I've just always been a big math guy, just always enjoyed it. Growing up I was a big LEGOs fan and I loved building stuff. I love seeing how things work and understanding how everything works together as one, whatever it may be.
I've always had that passion — both my brothers are engineers — and that's definitely part of it. It's something I never doubted (my interest in) and that's why I came here and that's what I'm pursuing. From here, I'm kind of keeping my options open.
There's definitely all different routes (of engineering): my brother, he works at Nissan in Smyrna, Tenn., and I've thought about taking that path and maybe working on automobiles. But I'd also love to work in construction and help build buildings and design them. I'm hoping to get an internship this summer and really see what I like and don't like.
Frierson: As a guy that likes to find out how things work, did you take a lot of things apart as a kid and then struggle to get them back together? Was there one that got you in the most trouble?
Harris: Absolutely, though I don't know that I ever got into too much trouble — I was usually pretty smart about it. I still remember it might have been a speaker or something and remember taking it apart and looking at it, just thinking it was the coolest thing ever. I get done and I have to put it back together, but I didn't know what I was doing. It's still in my room now, in some drawer with a bunch of pieces everywhere.
Frierson: What's something creative you do or that really interests you?
Harris: I just feel like every time I go somewhere, be it a restaurant or when the indoor practice facility was being built, I'd be walking beside it or driving by and the things I studied in my classes I could see being applied to the construction of the building. It was a lot of fun realizing, oh, yeah, I know about that stuff that goes into it that people don't see.
That's just the stuff I love; it fascinates me and I think it's awesome. It's definitely fun to watch stuff like that in real life.
Frierson: If you could travel anywhere in the world and someone else was picking up the tab, where would you like to go?
Harris: This past summer I was fortunate enough to go to the Galapagos Islands with my family, and it was the most unbelievable experience I've ever had. Snorkeling, they've got these huge turtles and it was just unbelievable. And I would go back there in a heartbeat.
We were snorkeling and one moment there's a shark swimming by you and the next there's this huge turtle, like almost the size of me. It's definitely something you can describe unless you're there to see it.
Frierson: How are you with fear in those situations? It is a shark, after all, a pretty serious predator in the water with you.
Harris: At first you feel a little fear, but then it's one of those things — my family has done a good job of taking us places and exposing us to different atmospheres like that. I've had enough of that that I'm kind of used to it. I'm also really thankful for it, because I know a lot of people can't go to the Galapagos Islands in the summer.
It was incredible and I loved it; I just love nature and being able to experience God's creation. It's awesome.
Frierson: Who's the most interesting guy on the team?
Harris: I'm big buddies with Jeb Blazevich and he's a unique guy — I love him to death. I'll definitely put him as the most interesting.
Frierson: Jeb and I have done three of these and we always have a good time. He's a wonderful goofball.
Harris: He knows how to hold himself, how to carry himself, but at the same time he likes to have people laugh and likes to be goofy. ... He's a great guy to have in the locker room and he's a fun friend to have.
Frierson: What movie do you and your buddies quote more than any other?
Harris: I'm a big "Happy Gilmore" guy. I love it, and even talking about Jeb, we'll be doing something and we'll quote it. There's always a movie quote.
Frierson: If you could eat any food every day for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Harris: I've kind of grown out of it a little, but when I was a kid I loved chicken tenders, just chicken tenders and fries. Once we went on a cruise, my family, and they had this buffet, and for 13 meals straight, including breakfast, I ate chicken tenders and fries every single time.
It's something we always laugh about, but it's true: I love chicken tenders and it would probably be my go-to meal.
Frierson: What's a food or dish that if it never crosses your plate again won't upset you at all?
Harris: I'm a pretty healthy guy now, I'm series when it comes to a good diet and all, but I cannot stand turnip greens. Sometimes my mom will make them and ... I love spinach and I'll drink these green spinach smoothies, not a problem at all, but you put turnip greens in front of me and I cannot do it.
Frierson: If football had the equivalent of walk-up music, like in baseball, what would your music be as you jogged onto the field?
Harris: I'd say "Humble and Kind" (by Tim McGraw). It's not really the most motivating song, but it's just a good country song and I love the message behind it and the principles it teaches. There's nothing better than just a good country song to get you fired up.
Frierson: Last one, take me through your bedroom back home. What's in it and what's there that really means a lot to you?
Harris: First off, I have my high school jerseys framed and they mean a lot to me. I tell you, I love high school football and I would do anything to play high school football again. It's one of my favorite things in the world.
So I have that framed, back when we went to state my sophomore year — sad we lost but still, just the memories, I still think of them on a daily basis. I have that and just all your trophies that you accumulate over the years, here and there.
Going back to the LEGOs, I'm a huge LEGO guy, and I have a huge "Star Wars" spaceship that I got when I was probably 8 years old. It was a huge box it came in, I remember, and that was my only birthday present. I built it for maybe three days straight and I have that still in there. It's something I take great pride in; it's still hanging in there, all these years later.
(This Q&A has been lightly edited for length and clarity.)
John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
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