Najee Harris sees things from a different perspective.
Before he became a superstar running back at the University of Alabama, he grew up homeless.
He and his mother bounced from state to state, trying to escape family problems and find a place to call home. When he ended up at a soup kitchen, eating food that was undesirable, Harris knew he had reached the bottom.
With football becoming his outlet, he grew to be an outstanding five-star athlete in the 2017 recruiting cycle. A native of Antioch, Calif., Harris earned “Mr. Football” for the state and chose to play for the Crimson Tide. He has won a national championship and is in the top-10 all-time in school history for rushing yards.
In seeing his journey come full circle, Harris loves to see others smile.
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During the matchup between Alabama and Ole Miss, he put a smile on the face of Braxton Weidman. An 8-year-old from Birmingham, Ala., Weidman is battling a stage four brain tumor, but he continues to fight. The conversations between Weidman and his favorite running back motivated Harris to have a career performance on the road versus Mississippi.
“You do you and most of the time when you that, we got this,” Weidman said to ESPN’s Tom Rinaldi on the advice he gave to Harris.
Harris took everything to heart and totaled 206 yards rushing on 23 carries with five touchdowns.
After bringing excitement to a child of inspiration, Harris decided to share his food with fans after the Tide earned a 41-0 victory over Mississippi State. The moment was caught on video, following the senior’s third 100-yard rushing performance of the season. He is more than just a running back, Harris is growing into the next major ambassador for Alabama football.
Alabama’s Najee Harris sharing his food after the game is the energy we NEED ?@ohthatsNajee22 (via austinarrant/TikTok) pic.twitter.com/pf5Vp7U23q
— Overtime (@overtime) November 4, 2020
A meeting with the LSU Tigers is next week and as he prepares for it, Harris is focused on being a well-rounded young man.
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Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
