Christian Harris talks position change to linebacker at Alabama

When Christian Harris stepped foot on the Alabama practice field for the first time as a true freshman, a new challenge was ahead of him. Harris would be switching positions in Tuscaloosa, going to linebacker after lining up at wide receiver and defensive back in high school.

Flash forward three years and Harris will play linebacker in the NFL after being selected by the Houston Texans. He recently talked about the position change and what his mentality was throughout it all. Harris credited being around teammates who also wanted to play at a high level along with continually betting on himself.

“Just believing in myself,” Harris said. “Coming into college, playing a position I never played before, going to Alabama — there was already a lot of people doubting me. At the end of the day, I just bet on myself and I continue to do that and I will continue to do that. By doing that, I have had a lot of success. Obviously, being blessed enough to play with a lot of great teammates who have that same mindset as me, who also want to be great.”

Coming out of high school, Harris was ranked a four-star prospect by the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting services. He was viewed as a linebacker prospect from the beginning, viewed as the No. 16 LB prospect in the 2019 class. Harris originally resides out of Baton Rouge and was the No. 6 player from the state of Louisiana.

Harris was thrown into the starting lineup as a freshman after a few injuries in the linebacker room. He never lost his job, being a key member of the defense during his three seasons. Even with his fellow inside linebacker partner seeing constant turnover, Harris always stuck out as a star player.

Now, the linebacker will get to continue his growth in Houston. Harris is excited to be playing for the Texans, saying the franchise has already shown how he will be used in their defensive scheme.

“I love the defense that they have,” Harris said. They were able to show me how I was utilized, how I’ll be able to be utilized in their scheme, and the success that I could have with that.”

Harris is joined by an SEC heavy draft class in Houston, headlined by LSU cornerback Derek Stingley. The group will be hoping the begin the rebuild the Texans are going through with new head coach Lovie Smith.