Tight end Jackson Harris, the only offensive early enrollee at Georgia this winter, receives a handshake from coach Mark Richt on National Signing Day.Jackson Harris wouldn't mind a similar start to his college career.
A 6-foot-5, 250-pound tight end from Columbia Central High in Columbia, Tenn., Harris enrolled last month looking to emulate Blazevich's early impact. Jackson is among eight early enrollees for the Bulldogs and the only one projected to play offense.
"It will help watching someone like Jeb, who came in and did very well," Harris said. "You definitely hope you can do that yourself, but I know Jeb is a really good player. I think working behind him and seeing how he does things will hopefully result in us pushing each other."
Harris amassed more than 1,200 receiving yards and had nine touchdowns as a Columbia Central senior, and he was rated the No. 5 tight end nationally by ESPN and 247Sports.com. He was Scout.com's No. 6 tight end, while Rivals.com ranked him No. 9 at the position.
The Bulldogs will have two senior tight ends on their roster this year, Jay Rome and Quayvon Hicks. Rome was among the nation's top 100 prospects in the 2011 "Dream Team" class but has been slowed by injuries the past two seasons, while Hicks is a former walk-on who has split time between tight end and fullback.
Jordan Davis, a redshirt sophomore who collected three catches in six games last season, is also in the tight end mix.
"They've had a lot of great tight ends here, and I'm not going to be afraid of the competition," Harris said. "The best players are going to play, but Georgia uses a lot of sets with two tight ends. All I'm going to do is go out there and practice as hard as I can."
Harris and Ensworth defensive back Rico McGraw comprise the first Volunteer State tandem Georgia has signed since the Memphis-area duo of receiver Marlon Brown and offensive lineman Austin Long in 2009. Long's younger brother, Hunter, is a 2011 signee and was the only scholarship player from Tennessee on the roster this past season.
The Volunteers finished with their first winning record since 2009 this past season and have assembled highly-regarded signing classes the past two years, so it's no surprise Georgia's trip to Neyland Stadium on Oct. 10 already is being discussed.
"All my friends are Tennessee fans, and everybody kind of jokes with me and stuff," Harris said. "They know I made this decision for me, and I am definitely looking forward to going to Knoxville this year."
Ball interviews at LSU
The New Orleans Times-Picayune reported Wednesday that Georgia receivers coach Tony Ball was interviewing for the same position at LSU. Ball, a graduate of Brainerd High School and UTC, has been a Bulldogs assistant since 2006 and the receivers coach since '09.
LSU has a vacancy following the departure last weekend of Adam Henry to the San Francisco 49ers. The Times-Picayune reported that Henry made roughly $370,000 this past season at LSU, which is $100,000 more than Ball made at Georgia.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.