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Harrison PO'd at Star

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  • Harrison PO'd at Star

    http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dl.../1058/SPORTS03


    Look who's talking: Harrison
    Colts' quiet star speaks but offers little insight
    By Mike Chappell
    Posted: August 20, 2008


    Marvin Harrison, the Indianapolis Colts' reticent receiver, broke his silence Tuesday afternoon, but offered little personal insight into his return from knee problems or any other Marvin-related matters.

    Speaking to the local media for the first time since the Colts' Jan. 13 divisional playoff loss to San Diego -- and speaking only to The Star -- Harrison made it clear from the outset there wasn't much he cared to share.
    Advertisement

    A Colts official ended the interview when Harrison was asked about an April 29 shooting in his hometown of Philadelphia that involved a gun he owned.

    Before that, Harrison was asked about football. He said he had no comment when asked whether the recent camp in Terre Haute was normal for him. He offered no opinion on whether he is back to where he was before an injury to his left knee forced him to miss 11 games last season.

    "I mean, have you been in Terre Haute watching practice?" Harrison said. "You can write what you see. That's the best way I can tell you."

    Informed that Colts fans might prefer to hear Harrison's assessment, he said, "You all seem to know more about it . . . you all write what you see. That way I won't have a comment."

    Harrison indicated he has been upset with some of what has been written about him. It was mentioned he has had some engaging discussions with the media during previous training camps.

    "Oh, yes, we have," Harrison said. "Then sometimes you walk out with that knife in your back sometimes.

    "I'll just say nothing. There will be better days down the line, but I have nothing right now."
    Call Star reporter Mike Chappell at (317) 444-6830.

    __________________________________________________ ____________________


    WTF is up with this? Marvin sure can be a strange guy sometimes. Lighten up Marvin, you get paid a bajillion dollars a year to play football. If you would actually answer a question straight up for once instead of beating around the bush about it and giving strange one word answers, then I think there would be a lot less whispering about your condition. God forbid reporters or fans try to find out what is wrong with the teams HOF receiver.

    I thought players had to make themselves available to the media at least sometimes?

    I used to think Harrison was just a quiet guy, but the more I read about him the more I think that he is a prima donna in the opposite way of a TO or Ocho Cinco.

    I just don't get why Harrison has to be so consistently standoffish.
    Last edited by Sollozzo; 08-21-2008, 02:34 AM.

  • #2
    Re: Harrison PO'd at Star

    Wow. Sounds like you're really overreacting. Why are you so upset about this?

    You act like you wouldn't get tired of having the exact same questions asked for 6+ months straight. Give the guy a break. If he's healthy and ready to go, he'll be on the field. That's all there is to it.

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Harrison PO'd at Star

      Sometimes I feel like this Colts team for all their success still feels extremely unapproachable. I don't know why. The parade immediately after the Super Bowl being the exception.
      Harrison is sort of a prima donna Peyton has admitted as much when he says Marvin will always let him know when he doesn't think he is getting the ball enough. He's just so quiet about it, it's not in your face like Chad Johnson or TO. Which is nice for our chemistry.

      I don't know, when I look back on these Colts, I think I might remember Harrison as possibly the most talented of the whole bunch, but he definitely won't be the first face that pops into my head. We really don't know him that well, and I think his HOF induction ceremony is just gonna be kind of awkward for everyone involved. I'm not sure what kind of speech he is gonna give.


      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Harrison PO'd at Star

        Originally posted by HeartlandFan View Post
        Wow. Sounds like you're really overreacting. Why are you so upset about this?

        You act like you wouldn't get tired of having the exact same questions asked for 6+ months straight. Give the guy a break. If he's healthy and ready to go, he'll be on the field. That's all there is to it.
        It's an occupational hazard. Ask JO about it. When you get injured, especially a major injury like Marvin had, you need to expect to get questioned about it until you show you are back up to speed. It's just the way it is. If Marvin doesn't like it then he should just be 100% quiet, and really just let his play do the talking. Saying something like this is just gonna tick the media off even more, and possibly fuel the fire that Marvin isn't quite ready to go.


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        • #5
          Re: Harrison PO'd at Star

          Originally posted by HeartlandFan View Post
          Wow. Sounds like you're really overreacting. Why are you so upset about this?

          You act like you wouldn't get tired of having the exact same questions asked for 6+ months straight. Give the guy a break. If he's healthy and ready to go, he'll be on the field. That's all there is to it.
          But that's my point. Harrison brings a lot of this on himself by always avoiding questions/reporters. If Harrison would just say something like "The knee is doing better and I'm doing everything I can to get back on the field and produce at a high level" then I think people would back off. But when he gives condescending answers and dodges questions he is opening up more cans of worms.

          And you implying that he is mad because people have asked the same questions for 6 straight months would carry more weight if Harrison had ever actually talked to the media in the years before the injury. But he didn't. I mean, you can probably count on one hand (missing fingers) the times that Harrison has actually given straight forward answers to the media. Some may call it quiet, I call it standoffish.

          The fans are the reason these players make millions. If we aren't going to games or buying team merchandise, then there is no money available to pay someone like Harrison their millions. The media is the only way for us to get information about the team. Therefore, I don't think it's that unreasonable to expect some non-condescending answers from those involved with the team. Really, would it kill Harrison to just say something like "I'm trying hard to get back to my previous level, the knee held up OK during training camp."

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Harrison PO'd at Star

            Originally posted by Adam1987 View Post
            But that's my point. Harrison brings a lot of this on himself by always avoiding questions/reporters. If Harrison would just say something like "The knee is doing better and I'm doing everything I can to get back on the field and produce at a high level" then I think people would back off. But when he gives condescending answers and dodges questions he is opening up more cans of worms.

            And you implying that he is mad because people have asked the same questions for 6 straight months would carry more weight if Harrison had ever actually talked to the media in the years before the injury. But he didn't. I mean, you can probably count on one hand (missing fingers) the times that Harrison has actually given straight forward answers to the media. Some may call it quiet, I call it standoffish.

            The fans are the reason these players make millions. If we aren't going to games or buying team merchandise, then there is no money available to pay someone like Harrison their millions. The media is the only way for us to get information about the team. Therefore, I don't think it's that unreasonable to expect some non-condescending answers from those involved with the team. Really, would it kill Harrison to just say something like "I'm trying hard to get back to my previous level, the knee held up OK during training camp."

            I have a slightly different take... Why did he bother with this 'breaking of silence' anyway? If you're going to talk, then talk (openly). Otherwise, keep up the silent treatment or just say "no comment".

            Even if he's pi$$ed, address it head-on instead of odd, weird comments that really only reflect bad on him (if he can't elaborate or put them in context).

            I've noticed Marvin getting more odd over the years. I'm not sure what to make of it.
            Nuntius was right for a while. I was wrong for a while. But ultimately I was right and Frank Vogel has been let go.

            ------

            "A player who makes a team great is more valuable than a great player. Losing yourself in the group, for the good of the group, that’s teamwork."

            -John Wooden

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Harrison PO'd at Star

              Marvin's really putting a tarnish on his legacy as a Colt. Some he brought on himself, some he didn't. I imagine the part he didn't has left a bad taste in his mouth.

              I don't know what professional athletes expect when it comes to media treatment. The good outlets do their jobs, no matter how it makes the players look. Trust me, they don't give a flying flock about what Marvin thinks about them. If he wants to clam up, that'll be reported and he'll look like a jerkoff, which is what happened here.

              Fans used to think of him as the quirky, quiet type. Well, the cat's out of the bag now, eh? It's really unfortunate. I prefer the strong, silent type.

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Harrison PO'd at Star

                LOL at Marvin getting aggrivated with reporters for the 1st time in 12 seasons, and now his legacy is tarnished.

                I just don't feel like he should have an obligation to make sure fans know every single thing about his recovery from an injury. It's his business, and if he doesn't feel like informing everyone, then that's fine. It doesn't make him arrogant, and it sure as hell doesn't take away from his legacy as one of the best WR's of all time.

                For the past 12 years, it's obvious that he isn't a person that likes to be the center of attention. I don't see how anything here makes him a prima donna.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Harrison PO'd at Star

                  What's funny is Chappy was there EVERYDAY doing his job. It's not like some one day stint from King, Clayton, or the NFL network wasting one day in THaute. Marvin must have really irked Chappell and I'll side with the reporter on this one.
                  You know how hippos are made out to be sweet and silly, like big cows, but are actually extremely dangerous and can kill you with stunning brutality? The Pacers are the NBA's hippos....Matt Moore CBS Sports....

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                  • #10
                    Re: Harrison PO'd at Star

                    Originally posted by Indy View Post
                    We really don't know him that well, and I think his HOF induction ceremony is just gonna be kind of awkward for everyone involved. I'm not sure what kind of speech he is gonna give.

                    "Things change. This is how I live my life. Let's please move on. Thank you."
                    This is the darkest timeline.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Harrison PO'd at Star

                      Originally posted by HeartlandFan View Post
                      LOL at Marvin getting aggrivated with reporters for the 1st time in 12 seasons, and now his legacy is tarnished.

                      I just don't feel like he should have an obligation to make sure fans know every single thing about his recovery from an injury. It's his business, and if he doesn't feel like informing everyone, then that's fine. It doesn't make him arrogant, and it sure as hell doesn't take away from his legacy as one of the best WR's of all time.

                      For the past 12 years, it's obvious that he isn't a person that likes to be the center of attention. I don't see how anything here makes him a prima donna.
                      No one said we have to know "everything" about the injury. All I'm asking is that Marvin give a non-condescending answer when asked about it. That would be better for the fans and better for Marvin, because then I think the media would back off a little. Just say something like "The knee is doing better, and I'm doing everything I can to be 100% this year." That certainly isn't telling us "everything", but it's at least acknowledging the question and giving a legitimate answer.

                      But when you say "you write what you can see, that's the best way I can tell you", well..that's just being an unnecessary a-hole in my opinion. That's not being a quiet, reserved guy.....that's being a pompous, standoffish one. Chappel seems to be a good guy and was just doing his job.

                      You don't have to be loud like TO or Ocho Cinco to be a prima donna. I think Marv is a prima donna in the opposite way of those guys.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Harrison PO'd at Star

                        For the love of god, who cares? Marvin has always disliked talking to people. I will always think of him as a great football player, and that's all I need to know. Tarnished? Please.
                        Don't ask Marvin Harrison what he did during the bye week. "Batman never told where the Bat Cave is," he explained.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Harrison PO'd at Star

                          Originally posted by Suaveness View Post
                          For the love of god, who cares? Marvin has always disliked talking to people. I will always think of him as a great football player, and that's all I need to know. Tarnished? Please.

                          Judging by the comments here, the comments on other Colts forums, and the comments posted under the actual article; plenty of people care. I see a trend of more and more fans growing tired of Harrison's standoffish behavior

                          I love him as a football player. I hope he gets 1200 yds and 12 touchdowns for the Colts this year. But that doesn't change the fact that he is aloof and standoffish.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Harrison PO'd at Star

                            I really just don't care. And we occasionally hear stories about how Peyton is high-maintenance and sometimes sort of a jerk too, you know, if we're going to be nitpicking the personalities of future HOF'ers.

                            I've never really thought of these Colts of the past few years as unapproachable. Marvin's a little quiet, sure, but Tony D., Peyton, Dwight, Bob, Reggie, Joe, etc.? All of them strike me as pretty gregarious and friendly. (Granted I've never met any of them.)
                            You, Never? Did the Kenosha Kid?

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Harrison PO'd at Star

                              I think this is completely blown out of proportion.

                              For me, this is all I need to know:
                              Harrison indicated he has been upset with some of what has been written about him. It was mentioned he has had some engaging discussions with the media during previous training camps.

                              "Oh, yes, we have," Harrison said. "Then sometimes you walk out with that knife in your back sometimes.
                              To me, it indicates that he has openned up in the past to the media and he felt like they went opposite of it and "stabbed him in the back."

                              If you have an already bad relationship with someone, or an organization, but have to be available to them due to your job description, are you really going to go out of your way to be friendly, open, and 100% honest? I know I wouldn't. If I felt slighted by them, I would keep everything close to my chest.

                              He's exactly right. They need to write what they see. Is he making cuts like the Marv before injury, or is he favoring the knee?

                              I think this illustrates his point about getting upset with them:
                              A Colts official ended the interview when Harrison was asked about an April 29 shooting in his hometown of Philadelphia that involved a gun he owned.
                              Yes, I know it's news. But it's been how long and nothing for him has came out of it? Let it go already, unless something new comes out.


                              He's already extremely quiet and obviously gonna go deeper into his shell if you poke and prod him.
                              Last edited by Since86; 08-21-2008, 01:16 PM.
                              Just because you're offended, doesn't mean you're right.” ― Ricky Gervais.

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