Rebels get one more shot at former Palo star Harrison

By Ryan Greene

Thursday, Dec. 11, 2008 | 2:15 a.m.

A few years later, City College of San Francisco safety Jarrell Harrison has warmed up to the feeling of stopping people from scoring rather than putting the points up himself.

Now, UNLV and coach Mike Sanford are hoping the former Palo Verde star wants to continue doing so as a Rebel.

Harrison will be in town for his final official visit this weekend. The signing day for mid-year junior college transfers -- such as Harrison -- is next Wednesday. He said he intends on penning his name that afternoon.

"They've already told me that I'll come in as a starter, No. 1 on the depth chart," Harrison said of his chats with the UNLV staff. "I think it should be interesting. I've got some familiarity with the coaches and stuff. I can't wait to get down there."

UNLV certainly has playing time to offer. The Rebels' pass defense ranked 63rd this season out of 119 FBS teams. The sorest of spots in the secondary, though, were at the safety positions. Juniors Daryl Forte and Terrance Lee took most of the reps, but Sanford implemented some mid-season shakeup after the group continually struggled during a five-game losing streak that followed the season's 3-1 start.

Big plays and missed tackles were a bugaboo for the Rebels all the way until the season's final day -- a 42-21 loss at San Diego State that left UNLV out of the bowl season picture.

Two quarterbacks-turned-safeties -- freshman Chris Jones and sophomore Travis Dixon -- showed some promise late in the season, as did freshman Beau Orth, a Bishop Gorman product.

But the problem for the Rebels now is that the two other schools still in the mix for Harrison's services -- Missouri and North Carolina State -- have promised the same early opportunities.

A fourth school that was hot after Harrison throughout the recruiting process -- Las Vegas Bowl-bound Arizona -- was lopped off his list recently.

"That's key right there," Harrison said of playing right away.

Harrison, who checks in at 6-foot-2 and 210 pounds, originally signed with UNLV back in 2005 as a quarterback. He led Palo to the 2004 Class 4A state and was the Southern Nevada Offensive Player of the Year. He threw for 763 yards and nine touchdowns while rushing for 683 yards and 13 scores. However, he failed to qualify academically out of high school, scoring a 750 on the SAT -- 150 points below the minimum required score.

He's emerged as a defender in his three years since graduation. Rivals.com ranks him as a three-star prospect, though it took some adjustment, both technically and mentally, to get there.

"Toughest part is, I guess, not scoring," he said of the offense-to-defense transition. "Now you get scored on. But that's the worst part about it. I hate being scored on. Safety's a fun position. The guys on defense are starting to get bigger right now, so I'd rather hit someone than be hit."

Being from the area and having already signed with UNLV once, Harrison knows what the Rebels' gameday drill is like. However, this weekend's visit will be different than the ones he took during the fall because the season is done. In a sense, the Rebels get the final shot at wowing him in person. Some would say that's a pretty favorable position.

His visit to Missouri came on Oct. 11, when the then-No. 3 Tigers fell to then-No. 17 Oklahoma State. He went to North Carolina State the weekend after Thanksgiving, as the Wolfpack clinched a berth in the Papa Johns.com Bowl by defeating Miami, 38-28.

"They were like small college towns, everything's centered around football," Harrison said. "It was cool, I liked the atmospheres, 60,000-plus (fans) in both of the places I've been."

One wrinkle that could help UNLV in its pursuit of Harrison, though, is the three-year contract extension Sanford agreed to earlier this week. Add on the one year remaining on his original five-year pact, and Sanford is under contract for four more seasons.

It's especially comforting for Harrison, considering the long-standing relationship he's had with the fourth-year Rebels coach.

"You want the coach that's recruiting you to be there," Harrison said. "A new coach comes in there, might change the whole offense, whole defense, you might not be in the plan.

"Coach Sanford, when he was recruiting me in high school, he told me he was gonna change the face of this program and bring in winners. I'm pretty sure they're gonna get closer and closer real soon, maybe crack the BCS, who knows. He's a good coach, and I believe in him."