Playing against Penn State, many call "Linebacker U", Alabama itself can be proud of our linebacking tradition. From the likes of Woodrow Lowe, Rolando McClain, Derrick Thomas, Barry Krauss, Cornelius Bennett, DeMeco Ryans, Dont'a Hightower, there has been a constant stream of top linebacker talent come through the Capstone. One of the young guns of the linebacking crew, who is wanting to make a name for himself this year, is starting junior weakside linebacker Jerrell Harris.

Harris came to Alabama with as a highly sought-after bluechip prospect out of Gadsden High School, just up interstate 59 in the northeast corner of the state. Impressive as a high school standout, he caught the attention of college scouts around the county. He was regarded as one of the top linebacker prospects in the country. In fact, he was a Parade All-American, named the No. 22 player nationally on SuperPrep Magazine's Elite 50, rated SuperPrep's No. 3 linebacker in the country, and commonly listed that year as the No. 2 player in the state of Alabama.

The high school accolades go on, but Harris has not emerged as starter until this year. He is now a man on a mission. He has something to prove to everyone who thinks he was a bust. Last year as a sophmore, he was suspended for the first six games of the year in an incident prior to the Virginia Tech for rules violations involving a laptop. He made restitutions and was back playing 6 games later. It put him a little behind on the year and he finished with 6 tackles and two solo stops.

The stats did not look fantastic, but he contributed to the team effort that led to the national championship. However, he set his mind to improving his body for the phyical rigors of SEC football by bulking up to 231 pounds from his incoming weight of 212 lbs in 2008. The results were remarkable, and we will definitely be able to see this young stud at the weakside linebacker defend the Penn State Nittany Lions with more speed and strength than ever.

Look for Jerrell Harris to go out tonight on a mission to prove he belongs in the SEC and in the same breath as the legendary linebackers of the one "true" Linebacker U.... Alabama.

Here is a video of Jerrell talking about tonight's match up with the Nittany Lions. The game starts at 6PM tonight at Tuscaloosa and will be televised on ESPN.

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