Taj Harris transferring to Rutgers..Leaving Rutgers

[RandomGuy]

Quit the team because he’s worried about his stats not being good enough. Go Taj!

I wish him good health and a happy life, but might as well not even have team sports anymore if it’s going this way.

If he transferred after last year, that’s one thing. Or in the summer, if he didn’t like the way things are looking.

Its going this way. Its a business, and players are now allowed to make a business decision.

 

[GreekFreak]

Its the new normal. Players have finite TIME.

Its possible that he and his teamates know the difference in playbooks? If he was going to be used 25%, 50% less?

If a companies leading salesman was stripped of 25% of his clients, half of his sales area, 3 months of pay, and demoted to shipping and receiving 25-50% of time? (Very important stuff) Would you say he was a quitter for finding a new job? Not one of us would accept that cut in pay, for the rest of our careers. (In this case, Half of Taj 's remaining career)

Howard leaving is also understandable. While some on the team felt Howard was the 2cnd best back? Playing a super senior is also a good call. You don't surrender 1/4 of your career, when you know you are still going to be sitting behind a possible Heisman candidate for the duration.

Do I like any of this? Nope. I wanted to keep both of these guys Orange. In terms of their football careers? Its understandable.

Respectfully, I don't agree with your analogy at all. Getting maximum sales is good for both the salesman and the company ... it's a win-win. Football is a team sport and about winning the game. If a receiver gets 25% less catches and the team wins the game that's what the receiver does for the team goals. As a former NYJ Head Coach once said: "You play to WIN the game.". It's not about Taj getting catches, it's about winning football games. Taj appears to put individual goals ahead of TEAM and I don’t agree with that thinking at all.

 

[OrangeDW]

Right. Marvin Harrison should’ve backed out of his senior year mid season and went to Fun N Gun Florida. He might’ve even gone on to become one of the best WRs of all time if they threw the ball to him more in college!

 

[PhatOrange]

Put me in the good riddance camp.

 

[Willy75]

Forget attitude, boorish behavior on the sideline and everything else, Taj dropped too many passes. On a very good team he’s a no. 3 receiver.

 

[tbonezone]

as my dad used to say without looking up from the newspaper ... "THERE'S THE DOOR"

 

[FreakTalksAboutSU]

I touch upon this in my next insidetheloudhouse column which drops Thursday. I'll dump a link here to it when it comes out.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

Taj also picked up offers from Utah and Western Kentucky.

Lol Taj Utah is all about running the ball.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

My understanding is that he's a "kid" that wears his emotions on his sleeve. Wants to win more than anything. HATES losing.. Funny, well liked, and a good teamate. Guys aren't "heartbroken " that he's leaving because he's a team "cancer". Quite the opposite. Sometimes, I wish more guys hated losing as much as him.

I just... I want to believe the "he hates losing" stuff, but I see him run lazy routes, or be a lazy decoy when the play isn't going to him, or gator arm stuff, or not put a lot of effort into blocking, and I mean... that's what hating losing looks like?

 

[RandomGuy]

Respectfully, I don't agree with your analogy at all. Getting maximum sales is good for both the salesman and the company ... it's a win-win. Football is a team sport and about winning the game. If a receiver gets 25% less catches and the team wins the game that's what the receiver does for the team goals. As a former NYJ Head Coach once said: "You play to WIN the game.". It's not about Taj getting catches, it's about winning football games. Taj appears to put individual goals ahead of TEAM and I don’t agree with that thinking at all.

Maybe not the best analogy? If you're taking the position of the company? Ok. Almost no employee would stay in a position where there was a large financial loss- whether current, future, or perceived.

I'm afraid this could be the new normal. I'm just hoping we don't lose a guy like Sean Tucker, because he wants to play for a bigger program to maximize his future possible earnings. (Draft stock.) I'm certain some teams will.

 

[orangemass]

Taj baj. Who cares

 

[RandomGuy]

I just... I want to believe the "he hates losing" stuff, but I see him run lazy routes, or be a lazy decoy when the play isn't going to him, or gator arm stuff, or not put a lot of effort into blocking, and I mean... that's what hating losing looks like?

I usually watch the oline for the 1st few seconds. When Randy Moss was playing? I just watched him, because his 1st step told me when he was taking the play off. It was like a Bat Signal... and it was on A LOT. I hate that. Also said, "I play when I want to play." Smh.

Yeah. Taj had stuff that could be improved.

 

[UD1954]

If Taj goes to a SEC school he'll get a lesson about the business side of college football ...

 

[capeorange]

I have a feeling you're right. What bothers me, this is 1 of the guys Dino sent to represent the university at media days. You have 85 (or more) scholarship players. He could literally have chosen just about anyone else, but gives him that honor. I can think of countless guys who deserved that chance.

Yeah, I agree. Maybe Dino though he could get him to behave by giving Taj the carrot instead of the stick.

 

[PhatOrange]

I just... I want to believe the "he hates losing" stuff, but I see him run lazy routes, or be a lazy decoy when the play isn't going to him, or gator arm stuff, or not put a lot of effort into blocking, and I mean... that's what hating losing looks like?

absolutely . This hates losing stuff is garbage. Nobody likes to lose that’s a given, but he took sooo many plays off if it wasnt going to him that’s not playing to win….and his temper tantrums say all you need to know about his character. Hates losing and playing to win are two different things.

 

[Dinkyspond]

Besides everything, he had a lot of drops in big situations. He needs to work on his hands.

 

[kcsu]

I guess ill just say it i loved his passion but i didnt think that he was that good a wr. I know all the records but i just never saw him as being all that good.
Hope he does well.

 

[RandomGuy]

Besides everything, he had a lot of drops in big situations. He needs to work on his hands.

13 drops in 256 targets

Steve Ishmael 13 drops in 323 targets
Ervin Phillips 17 drops in 333 targets
Sean Riley 8 drops in 172 targets
Amba 16 drops in 208 targets
Jamal Custis. 7 drops in 120 targets
Devin Butler 9 drops 91 targets
Nykiem Johnson 11 drops in 180 targets
Trishton Jackson 6 drops 143 targets

About middle of the pack

Erv with Babers 13 drops 263 targets
Ish with Babers 6 drops 244 targets

 

[Rocco]

Sadly, this kid is headed down a rough path if he doesn’t get his attitude under check. I wish him the best, but you don’t treat your coaches and teammates like that on the sidelines when things aren‘t going your way 100% of the time.

And you certainly don’t go after the fans.

Best of luck, but good riddance kid. Next…

 

[RandomGuy]

I would guess Babers is giving a decent recommendation? You have to think schools ask.

 

[cali315phan]

I would guess Babers is giving a decent recommendation? You have to think schools ask.

I thought that too, but then the more i thought about it, it makes sense that SEC schools are the majority of the offers. There's a certain arrogance those programs seem to carry, in that they think because they're the SEC, if there's talent they can win with it, no matter what the baggage is. I doubt Jimbo Fisher called DIno and asked him if Taj is a good team player.

 

[IthacaMatt]

I can't say I agree that he always tried hard on the field. I think he was a very solid player when he wanted to be. I just saw too many plays that he didn't put forth an effort for my liking.

Yeah, me too. Not to speak ill of the dead, but he dropped a lot of balls and he didn't always finish his routes. He pouted and whined like he was a star, and while he was the best receiver on a couple losing teams, he's not even top 5 in the Babers era, or just barely.

 

[CA Monk]

13 drops in 256 targets

Steve Ishmael 13 drops in 323 targets
Ervin Phillips 17 drops in 333 targets
Sean Riley 8 drops in 172 targets
Amba 16 drops in 208 targets
Jamal Custis. 7 drops in 120 targets
Devin Butler 9 drops 91 targets
Nykiem Johnson 11 drops in 180 targets
Trishton Jackson 6 drops 143 targets

About middle of the pack

Erv with Babers 13 drops 263 targets
Ish with Babers 6 drops 244 targets

Me with every drop in every target

 

[Finwad32]

I mean, good luck Taj… As my parents would say, if you don’t…

 

[David321]

Does anyone else suspect that Taj left because Shrader is QB1? That is what the timeline suggests. If that is the case, I’m not sure why anyone would defend him.