BILLINGS — Reed Harris wasted no time making an impact in big-time college football.
During his redshirt freshman season last year at Boston College, Harris played in all 13 games — making 11 starts — and had 486 receiving yards with four touchdown catches. He averaged a staggering 28.6 yards per reception.
Now the quarterback-turned-receiver from Great Falls High has designs on making a further leap in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
There's just one question to answer.
"I think it's just going to be, how bad do I want it?" Harris said during a recent phone conversation with MTN Sports. "How bad do I want to put in the effort to attack every practice and every game? I just need to be able to take that next step, and it starts right now. I have to put in the work every single day."
From childhood to the Heights—Eyes on Eagles explores the stories that make our Boston College Eagles exceptional, both on and off the field.
— Boston College Football (@BCFootball) August 19, 2024
Episode 1 showcases Reed Harris’ journey from his Montana family farm to Boston College. pic.twitter.com/Oztu7LCrUN
The 6-foot-5, 217-pound Harris flashed moments of brilliance last season, perhaps best exemplified by his acrobatic 28-yard touchdown catch during a 34-23 home victory over Pitt on Nov. 30. But he also had touchdown catches of 72, 67 and 18 yards among his 17 total receptions a year ago.
He even got a shout out from hall of fame receiver and ESPN analyst Randy Moss as part of his popular "You Got Mossed" segment spotlighting highlight-reel catches.
Harris' performance last season led BC coach Bill O'Brien to comment: "Reed Harris is one of the most improved players on our team. He's come a long way, made a lot of big plays. Very proud of him. He's got a great future. He's been awesome for us."
An all-around athlete, Harris' success as a college wide receiver was perhaps foreshadowed during his senior season at Great Falls when he transitioned from quarterback to more of a pass-catching role, a year in which he finished with 553 receiving yards and three touchdowns — all team highs.
The year prior, Harris threw for 1,544 yards and 12 scores as the Bison signal-caller.
At BC, located in Chestnut Hill, Mass., Harris has overcome some growing pains with limited experience at receiver though he appeared in four games as a true freshman, which allowed him to keep his redshirt per NCAA rules.
"It was hard at first," said Harris, who is pursuing a degree in psychology. "At that time there were a bunch of older guys that I could just watch and learn from, and so freshman year was really an experimental year for me.
"And then going into (last) year, I had an idea of what I wanted to do. I knew I wanted to play receiver and at that point it was just about working on my footwork, working on my hands, trying to catch the ball better, get bigger, faster, stronger.
"But now that I've got three summers under my belt here, I feel like going into this season I'm fully comfortable and everything's going smooth. I'm confident in my spot on the depth chart, everything like that."
It's been an interesting journey for Harris, who was born in Minnesota but grew up on a 12,000-acre farm outside Conrad that was passed down through his family on his mother's side. He relocated to Great Falls in eighth grade, in time to star for four years in high school with the Bison.
The move to fast-paced Boston proved to be another significant changeover.
"Coming here as a freshman in college and seeing skyscrapers and thousands of people, it was a completely different world, trying to adapt," Harris said. "Everybody's a little more worried about themselves, people are trying get from place to place faster. But now it's just like I'm back home. I can call Boston home."
Harris and Boston College — which went 7-6 last year with an appearance in the Pinstripe Bowl — begin the 2025 season on Saturday at home against FCS Fordham. It will be the start of what he hopes will be an even more productive campaign.
Catching passes and making big plays is his primary job, but Harris knows it's about more that just that.
"I'm not scared to stick my nose in and go run block when I need to, but at the same time you have to be able to make plays down the field whether its in the short game or long game," he said. "I'll go dig out a safety any day, but for me its just being able to complete those deep balls, stay consistent, have great hands and just produce for the offense."
And attack every practice and every game to take that next step.
