Why is cliff harris not playing

They were the first to use computers to process their scouting reports. Harris still talks of computer printouts he used to prepare for games. He says the value Landry placed on such preparation fit well with a math and physics major from an NAIA school. Sections U. Science Technology Business U. Undrafted from small school, Harris makes hall with Cowboys. Connect with the definitive source for global and local news.

The Associated Press. It was a tough deal, a tough thing for a first-year guy out of Ouachita Baptist. In retrospect, the entire story is absurd. The Cowboys drafted 19 players that season and brought another undrafted free agents to training camp. Yes, , including 23 defensive backs.

Only one cracked the defensive starting lineup. The kid who was offered exactly one scholarship, and even then only as a favor to his father, who also played at the Arkadelphia-based campus in Arkansas.

I mean, think about it. I was just a rookie swept into that. They would say, 'Look for this. You don't have to take all these exact clues Coach [Tom] Landry is filling your brain with. You can do it a simpler way. Lilly was proven correct, the Cowboys finished in and advanced to the franchise's first Super Bowl, losing an ugly affair to Baltimore, They would win a championship the following season, the Doomsday Defense absolutely dominating in a defeat of Miami in Super Bowl VI.

The Cowboys missed the playoffs just once over Harris' decade of dominance at safety and finished with a winning record all 10 seasons. This is also when Dallas was dubbed America's Team, with Harris being a ginormous reason why his team was seemingly always on television.

When Brandt called Harris about signing as an undrafted free agent, Harris was actually upset with the team for saying it was going to draft him. This sort of deal happened all the time, however.

Nobody was more locked into the league than Brandt, who was pretty sure no other team was going to use a draft pick on Harris. Heck, he wasn't sure how many other teams even knew his name, although from the beginning Brandt was convinced Harris would have a been at least a second-round pick if he had attended a Big 8 school.

After missing three games during his rookie season with National Guard duty, Harris never missed another one, regular-season or playoffs. In fact, before last year, teammate Drew Pearson and Harris were the only members of that all-decade squad not in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

While few players in league history have ever been less about statistics, Harris had those too, totaling 29 career interceptions and 16 fumble recoveries. He was also among the league's premier kick returners earlier in his career. His As much as any player in franchise history, Harris was about intimidation. Former Washington coach George Allen brilliantly once described him as a rolling ball of butcher knives.

Trust me, before the ball was snapped, every offensive player on the field knew where Cliff was. He finished with 29 interceptions, and his 16 fumble recoveries are tied for the second most in club history.

Brandt and the Cowboys found Harris and others like him through a scouting system that assigned point values to players in various categories. They were the first to use computers to process their scouting reports.

Harris still talks of computer printouts he used to prepare for games. He says the value Landry placed on such preparation fit well with a math and physics major from an NAIA school.

And that's part of the reason Ouachita Baptist's football stadium and a small school defensive player of the year award are named after Harris. We'll notify you here with news about. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest?

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