Denver Harris returns to practice for LSU after absence due to 'personal matters'

Denver Harris is back at practice for LSU, according to The Bengal Tiger’s Shea Dixon. The Texas A&M transfer cornerback has missed the last week or so due to what Brian Kelly called “personal matters.”

Harris hasn’t been seen on the field in some time after falling down the depth chart, Dixon said on Andy Staples On3 earlier this week. He started out with the second team after transferring in, but wound up with the third team and eventually missing time after his involvement in a fight last week.

That stood out to the beat reporters who now have access to practice, according to Dixon.

“We’ve gotten to see Denver Harris out there, and he started out the first week, running second team,” Dixon told On3’s Andy Staples. “And it kind of felt like okay, they’re dangling the carrot and they’re motivating him and they want him to take charge.

“Well, in very short order, he was third team and with guys who were walk-ons and in a room where you already lost one of your transfers, JK Johnson, to injury during fall camp. Now, you’re down to two transfers in Duce Chestnut and Zy Alexander. Those two get every first-team rep, and now Denver’s third team? We just saw things in practice with the media being there of kind of piping back at the coaches or whatever it might be to where you’re like, ‘Oh man, this isn’t what you normally see and you’re not seeing that from anywhere else.’”

Kelly said Harris was dealing with “personal matters,” but left the door open for a possible return this weekend. It appears he wound up coming back based on Saturday’s practice.

The situation was the latest turn for Harris, who made headlines last season as a freshman with the Aggies. He was one of multiple players to be suspended for the game against Miami and eventually missed the last half of the year due to suspension. After the season, Harris decided to enter the transfer portal — one of a few highly rated Texas A&M players to do so.

Although he didn’t appear to run into any issues at LSU over the spring and summer, the fall became a different story, according to Dixon. The Tigers took multiple cornerbacks in the portal, with Harris coming in as the highest-ranked of the group. He checked in as the No. 13-ranked player to hit the portal during the 2023 cycle, per the On3 Transfer Portal Rankings.