MIAMI -- Shy or aloof? Arrogant or misunderstood? Bad teammate or just a private one?
Just try to figure out Indianapolis Colts receiver Marvin Harrison. In a world of me-first receivers, players who do anything and say anything to put the focus on themselves, Harrison is the polar opposite; a man who keeps to himself, avoiding the spotlight as well as he avoids corners in press coverage.
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| Marvin Harrison and Peyton Manning often speak during games through backup QB Jim Sorgi. (Getty Images) |
It was Media Day at Dolphin Stadium as part of Super Bowl XLI, and Harrison had to take his perch at the podium. Awaiting any absentee was a big, fat, league-imposed fine -- not to mention a lifetime of scrutiny from the very same media Harrison tries to avoid. So he had no choice.
"Talking doesn't get you anything in my profession," Harrison said. "There's no need to talk."
So he doesn't do much of it. The word is he only likes doing things -- like a recent Sports Illustrated story -- that his mother can see back in Philadelphia, which is why he isn't great with the local media.
When the Colts clinched their berth in the Super Bowl by defeating the Patriots, Harrison was nowhere to be found in the jubilant locker room when the media came roaring in. He was long gone, which is the way he likes it.
"I don't need to be more famous," Harrison said.
Yet, as he sat at the podium Tuesday, we saw an engaging Harrison. He said he was nervous, but the more he talked the more at ease he appeared to become.
Several times, at different points of the session, he was asked about his desire to shy away from the media. At one point, he looked disgusted to hear the question again.
"Where have you been?" Harrison asked.
When two rejects from American Idol came calling -- part of a late-night skit -- one actually asked Harrison what his favorite sport is. Harrison looked annoyed.
Think it was football?
