Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, December 27, 1994 TAG: 9412280019
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
However, when Harrison received the Brian Piccolo Award after a season marked by triumph and turmoil, he had a look of instant recognition.
``When I was in my second year, Keith Lyle and I watched the movie `Brian's Song,''' Harrison said. ``Keith's father [an ex-Chicago Bears safety] had a cameo appearance in it, but we ended up watching the whole movie.
``That was the first time I had ever heard of Brian Piccolo.''
Only recently has Harrison become aware of the award, given to a player who embodies the ideals of Piccolo, an ex-Wake Forest running back and NCAA rushing champion who spent four years with the Chicago Bears before being stricken with cancer in 1970.
``The week before we played N.C. State, we were eating dinner, and the equipment manager whispered something in my ear about needing a tuxedo,'' Harrison said.
``The first thing that came to mind was that I had made All-ACC. I was excited for about 10 or 15 minutes and then I realized, `That's impossible. I wasn't even nominated.'''
Harrison, who returned from a broken leg to start 11 games at offensive tackle, was to be honored at an annual awards banquet at which the ACC recognizes the all-conference team and players of the year.
``At first I didn't really want to go down there,'' Harrison said. ``All I had done was come back from an injury. Here were 22 guys [the All-ACC team] who were the best in the conference. How would that look?''
It didn't take long for Harrison to get over his reservations, and he became fast friends with Damien Covington, a linebacker for N.C. State, but some disappointment remained.
``I don't feel I gained the respect I wanted from the coaches or media,'' Harrison said. ``Every time I was mentioned, it was because of the comeback, not because I made some great block.
``I never expected to be a superstar, but I had a good year, a decent year. I was able to contribute. The year went just the way I would have wanted.''
Virginia assistant coach Danny Wilmer says there is no better offensive tackle in the ACC, but it is hard to think of Harrison and not forget the gruesome injury he suffered Aug.20, 1993.
The fracture of Harrison's lower leg caused the bone to break through the skin, not unlike the bloody injury that ended the career of former Washington Redskins quarterback Joe Theismann. It required that Harrison spend 16 weeks in a cast.
It was out of fear that Harrison would miss the 1994 season that UVa requested - and was granted - a rare sixth season for Harrison in 1995.
``When I saw him in June, I wasn't sure we could count on him,'' said George Welsh, UVa's coach.
Harrison had a limp at the beginning of the season and could not practice every day, but the knee held up - not that the painful memories of the injury faded quickly.
``It's always been a worry, whenever I practice or play,'' Harrison said. ``I'm always conscious of the little things because I know it doesn't take much to get hurt seriously.''
Harrison found that injuries to other players had a more profound effect on him, particularly a broken leg suffered by teammate Mark Krichbaum under virtually the same circumstances - UVa's first scrimmage - as Harrison's.
``The first thing I thought about was what he was going to have to go through,'' said Harrison, but Krichbaum did not have a compound fracture and was able to return for the sixth game.
Harrison's rehabilitation was hardly complete before a new ordeal threatened to take over his life. In late summer, he was charged with petty larceny in connection with the sale of stolen textbooks.
Harrison was not accused of stealing the textbooks - merely selling them - but the culprit could not be found, and the case dragged on, with numerous postponements, before he was found not guilty prior to the N.C. State game.
``I had worked so hard to build the image of a good student and good athlete and show it could be done,'' said Harrison, a graduate business student. ``It made it tough for me to walk around campus.
``I didn't know the books were stolen. It was a guy we shot ball with. He had been a student. I didn't think twice about doing it. The first I knew there was a problem, I was called into the coaches' office and the police were there.''
The biggest embarrassment came when one of UVa's newspapers, the University Journal, learned about Harrison's case while researching another story and put the Harrison story on the front page.
``Everybody who didn't know me - even some of the coaches - felt I had done something shady,'' he said. ``Truthfully, what I did was stupid. [It was] bad judgment. I should have known better than to put myself in that situation.''
Harrison's biggest fear was that the incident would get back to his mother. At 6 feet 4 and 283 pounds, he still considers himself ``the baby,'' as well as a source of pride for his family.
As he continues to experience soreness in his leg, Harrison said he has not made a decision on next year. He puts the odds at 75 to 80 percent that he will return, but his prideful grin suggests otherwise.
``I'd like to go back to Atlanta next year and not just as a guy who was injured,'' he said. ``That's a goal of mine. A lot of those guys were talking about what round they would go in, if they would stay in school or what kind of cars they would be driving. I'd like to get to the level where I could start thinking about those things.''
by CNB