Harrison Sr. retired after the 2008 season, when Harrison Jr. was only 6. He remembers bits and pieces of his father’s NFL time – winning the Super Bowl in 2007, his Hall of Fame induction – but mostly it is about his dad’s knowledge.
“People say when they see him it’s the same, like a bigger version of myself,” Harrison Sr. said, adding with a smile that his son – at 6-foot-4 four inches taller than his father – is better at contested catches.
All Harrison Sr. wants is for his son to succeed at whatever he does. It happened to be in football, and that was something Harrison Jr. was going to have to deal with from a young age.
“When you see Harrison Jr. on the back of your jersey,” the son said, “everyone is expecting big things.”
The lessons Marvin Sr. gave could only help Marvin Jr. But the son still had to go out and compete, still had to shine on the biggest college stages, starring at Ohio State.
Bloodlines alone weren’t going to make him the fourth pick in the draft.
“People say comparison is the thief of joy,” said Cardinals tackle Paris Johnson Jr., who had also been teammates with Harrison Jr. in college. “To him, he’s not necessarily comparing himself. I think Marvin is going to become his own player, write his own story. But because he has a Hall of Fame dad, there are a lot of lessons he won’t have to learn on his own.”
Indeed, Fitzgerald said he wouldn’t really have any advice for Harrison Jr. because “the things he’s been hearing at home his entire life is exactly what he needs to be.”
Like any son, Harrison Jr. would hear but not necessarily listen to his father. When that started to change, when Harrison Sr. finally felt like the son was taking what advice he’d give him to heart, that was when dad started thinking his son could eventually become so good at the sport.
It hasn’t stopped, although Harrison Sr. admitted he’s going to back off because kids don’t want to hear from their dad every day.
“My job is to find the weaknesses, and if I do, we’re going to work on them,” Harrison Sr. said. “We’ve had so many conversations over the years, he knows the mission.”
At some point, Fitzgerald and Harrison Jr. will meet. From afar, however, Fitzgerald – the ultimate professional – sees a 21-year-old professional who is coming to Arizona.
With all the star receivers that played at Ohio State, Fitzgerald said, Harrison “never…
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