By KACE KIESCHNICK, Tiger Rag Staff Reporter
LSU wide receiver Jackson Harris had a career night in No. 10 LSU’s (3-1, 1-1 Southeastern Conference) 35-6 win over No. 23 Texas A&M (2-2, 0-2 SEC). The Hawaii transfer set a career high with 163 receiving yards on six catches and scored two touchdowns, surpassing a 153-yard mark set against Wyoming last season.
With tight end Trey’Dez Green sidelined after suffering a knee injury against Ole Miss, the LSU offense needed new pass catchers to step up. Harris and sophomore receiver Winston Watkins Jr. answered that call, combining for 270 of quarterback Sam Leavitt’s 312 air yards.
Harris said it was actually a message from former LSU receiver Jarvis Landry that inspired the receiver room.
“He was just like, ‘The season, this offense and this team all come down to us making plays. There’s a standard here, and it’s on the wall in the receiver room – Ja’Marr Chase, Justin Jefferson, all of them.’ And I think we took that to heart, and I think we gotta keep working. The work never stops, but I mean that’s that’s the standard,” Harris said after the game.
Chase, of course, led the nation during LSU’s 2019 national championship season with 1,780 receiving yards and 20 touchdown grabs. Jefferson was not too far behind with 1,580 yards and 18 scores. Other former LSU star receivers Harris did not mention include Malik Nabers, Brian Thomas Jr., Odell Beckham Jr. and Landry himself, who made 77 catches for 1,193 yards and 10 touchdowns as a junior in 2013.
Coach Lane Kiffin said he had a similar conversation with Harris about stepping up in Green’s absence after warm-ups.
“He really hadn’t got many opportunities, but when he had he looked good, ran well with the ball, and the things we had seen on tape of why we brought him here – big, sleek outside receiver. It was awesome to see, and a lot of those plays were kind of similar type of play action to Trey’Dez type of plays. He was really good,” Kiffin said.
Harris was a big play machine with the Rainbow Warriors last season and finished his redshirt sophomore campaign with 49 catches for 963 yards and 12 touchdowns, but he did not enjoy the same production through his first three games as a Tiger. Harris did grab three catches for 80 yards in LSU’s 45-14 win over Louisiana Tech but had just two catches for 37 yards in his other two outings.
“It wasn’t hard,” Harris said about being patient for his opportunity to shine. “The work is the work regardless. You don’t know when it’s gonna pay off. It could have showed up in week six, and that is what it is. But I’m glad I finally showed up for the team, and that’s the most important thing.”
Harris was ninth in the nation last season, averaging 19.7 yards per catch, and his explosiveness resurfaced in Tiger Stadium. Six of his eight catches went for 15 yards or more and he had three receptions for over 25 yards.
His biggest play came on a 57-yard touchdown in the third quarter. The Tigers sped to the line on a fourth-and-one from their own 43-yard line. After running back Dilin Jones lined up to take the direct snap, the back field shifted. Leavitt took the snap and faked the hand-off to Jones while Harris sold a block and leaked down the seam on a wide open path to the end zone to increase the LSU lead to 21-3.
“That’s credit to coach (Charlie) Weis and coach Kiffin,” Harris said. “Just aggressive play calling, I love it. My heart got caught beating a little bit when they called it because I knew it was gonna work, and we’ve been repping it all week.”
Harris’s other score came in the second quarter. On a second-and-seven from the Texas A&M 16-yard line, Leavitt targeted Harris on a one-on-one go-ball to the corner of the end zone, and Harris used his 6-foot-2, 205-pound frame to reach around the Aggies defender and make the contested catch. He also had a third touchdown grab that would have matched another career high in the third quarter, but it was called back by a penalty.
Harris wowed on multiple occasions, as did his chemistry and timing with Leavitt. Watkins has led the way in the receiver room to start the season, but the Tigers have still been in search of a No. 1 receiver on the outside and a consistent deep threat that can deliver the explosive plays Kiffin’s offense is known for.
Harris could be the one to do just that.
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