<p>Perhaps an asterisk should be attached to the number of tackles John Harris made for Roncalli last football season.</p>
<p>Those 49 stops, after all, don’t tell the entire story.</p>
<p>Double-teamed virtually every play, the senior defensive tackle takes a mature approach to his role on the Rebels’ defense rather than pouting about how his statistics aren’t gaudier.</p>
<p>"There was one game where I wasn’t double-teamed, and that was in the sectional against Cathedral (in the sectional)," Harris said. "And that was against Emil Ekiyor, and he’s at Alabama right now.</p>[sc:text-divider text-divider-title="Story continues below gallery" ]Click here to purchase photos from this gallery
<p>“But I’m used to it. If they’re double-teaming me, it’s a compliment. That means there’s a free hitter. The stats really don’t mean much to me.”</p>
<p>Harris entered Roncalli as a freshman with some big shoes to fill.</p>
<p>His eldest sibling, Halle, excelled in sprints and hurdles for the girls track program. Will Harris, his brother, starred in football and hit the game-winning single to help the Roncalli baseball team capture the 2016 Class 4A state title.</p>
<p>John Harris started to show his skills as a varsity athlete during his sophomore football season. He saw playing time as a backup on a senior-dominated squad that went 15-0 and won the 4A state championship.</p>
<p>"Being a defensive lineman is all stimulus response. John is so good at that part of the game. His reaction is so fast to whatever block has been put in front of him," second-year Rebels coach Scott Marsh said. "It’s psychological, really. How quick can you respond?</p>
<p>"I would put his intelligence above anybody I’ve ever coached at that position."</p>
<p>In April, the 6-foot-3, 265-pound Harris verbally committed to play football at Ball State. He now plans to cherish his final season in a Roncalli uniform, which starts next Friday night at Southport.</p>
<p>“This is my last chance to play football at Roncalli, so I’ve got to give everything I have every play," Harris said. "It’s definitely going to be special."</p>[sc:pullout-title pullout-title="2018 schedule" ][sc:pullout-text-begin]<p><strong>Date;Opponent;Time</strong></p>
<p>Aug. 17;at Southport;7 p.m.</p>
<p>Aug. 24;at Franklin Central;7 p.m.</p>
<p>Aug. 31;Bishop Chatard;7 p.m.</p>
<p>Sept. 7;at Columbus North;7 p.m.</p>
<p>Sept. 14;Scecina;7 p.m.</p>
<p>Sept. 21;at Brebeuf;7 p.m.</p>
<p>Sept. 28;Bloomington North;7 p.m.</p>
<p>Oct. 5;Bloomington South;7 p.m.</p>
<p>Oct. 12;at Guerin Catholic;7 p.m.</p>[sc:pullout-text-end][sc:pullout-title pullout-title="Four downs with … senior RB Elijah Mahan" ][sc:pullout-text-begin]<p>1. Which opponent’s field is your favorite/least favorite and why?</p>
<p>"My favorite field is Arsenal Tech. I like their field because it’s a really nice stadium and really nice turf. My least favorite to play on is any field with a grass field. I get itchy and it’s hard for me to make cuts."</p>
<p>2. What other position would you play if your coach let you?</p>
<p>"Either defensive line or linebacker. When I was little I played D-line, and I just like to go out and hit people."</p>
<p>3. Which school that is not on your schedule would you love to play against?</p>
<p>"I would like to see us play Center Grove. That’s where I went my freshman year, and I think that it would be fun to watch this team fight a (Class) 6A school."</p>
<p>4. What’s something about this year’s team that will surprise people?</p>
<p>"The amount of will that all of us have. A lot of the starters right now haven’t started before, including me. We just really want to get out there and show everybody what we have."</p>[sc:pullout-text-end][sc:pullout-title pullout-title="Scouting the Rebels" ][sc:pullout-text-begin]<p>Coach: Scott Marsh (2nd year)</p>
<p>Last season: 8-2; lost to Cathedral 28-23 in Class 5A sectional semifinal</p>
<p>Key returnees: LB Brandon Berger, CB Jacob Denney, OL Simon Dias, WR Luke Dill, DL John Harris, LB Tom Hodge, CB Dylan Lewis, DL Ethan Lockard, RB Elijah Mahan, OL Joe Mullin and QB Alex Volk, seniors</p>
<p>Top newcomers: DL Tyler Muse and DB Gavin Snyder, seniors; TE Daniel Asher, LB David Clayton and DB Jack Wardzala, juniors</p>
<p>Outlook: What’s expected to be a stout Rebels defense will be tested early and often, as the first five opposing quarterbacks on the team’s schedule passed for a total of 10,465 yards and 107 touchdowns last season. Harris, a Ball State verbal commit, and Berger, a linebacker, lead this unit. Roncalli breaks in a new starting quarterback in Volk, while Mahan, a state wrestling finalist last winter, is expected to get the majority of the carries.</p>
<p>"Our defensive line and our linebackers are where we feel we have the most experience," Marsh said. "We’ve got really good talent at those two positions as well. We should be able to stop the run pretty consistently, and so that’s always a good place to start. We think the offense can catch up. It’s not like we don’t have offensive talent. We do. But we’re going to have to be creative. Probably the biggest thing we don’t have from the last two years and this year is just the volume of kids. The good thing is we have a quarterback who, from an intelligence standpoint, is pretty special.”</p>
<p>Notable: The Rebels host Bloomington North (Sept. 28) and South (Oct. 5) in consecutive weeks, the first time they’ve faced either of the Bloomington schools since 1990.</p>[sc:pullout-text-end]
