{"id":13355,"date":"2014-09-09T01:01:19","date_gmt":"2014-09-09T06:01:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/news\/?p=13355"},"modified":"2015-11-12T08:29:59","modified_gmt":"2015-11-12T14:29:59","slug":"mke-panther-turns-pro-in-the-nfl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/news\/mke-panther-turns-pro-in-the-nfl\/","title":{"rendered":"MKE Panther turns pro \u2013 in the NFL"},"content":{"rendered":"

 <\/p>\n

\"From<\/a>
From rebounds to receptions. Panther cager Demetrius Harris (47) has made the Kansas City Chiefs’ team as a tight end.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Not unlike some of his former teammates, former 51ÁÔÆæ men\u2019s basketball player Demetrius Harris is living out a dream by playing professional sports. However, the former Panther is different from most Milwaukee basketball veterans in that his professional playing career is in a sport he never played in college.<\/p>\n

\"Tough<\/a>
Tough on the boards when he played basketball at 51ÁÔÆæ, Harris is prized as a football player for his speed and hands.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Late last month, Harris realized a dream when he was named to the Kansas City Chiefs\u2019 initial 53-man roster for the 2014 season. He spent the 2013 NFL season on the team\u2019s practice squad and worked tirelessly in the weight room and on the field to hone his football skills after so much time away from a game he hadn\u2019t played since high school. Now, his career as a tight end in the National Football League finally takes flight with a niche spot on the Chief\u2019s special teams. He suited up for Sunday\u2019s game against the Tennessee Titans. Next up is a Sept. 14 Chiefs\/Broncos match up, but first\u2013things-first says Harris, who now describes himself as strictly a football guy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m very excited to have made the team, but I don\u2019t want to be too excited and get ahead of myself,\u201d Harris said. \u201cThere\u2019s still work to be done and I\u2019m looking forward to the full season.\u201d<\/p>\n

In high school, Harris was a two-sport star in Jacksonville, Ark., earning all-state honors in both football and basketball. After signing to play football at Arkansas State University, the 6-foot-7 Harris had a change of heart and opted to focus his energy on playing basketball in college instead. That switch in plans brought him to Mineral Area Community College in Missouri, where he shined for two years. As a sophomore, he put up 11.5 points and 7.8 rebounds per game and collected All-Midwest Community College Athletic Conference and NJCAA All-Region 16 accolades before signing to play at Milwaukee.<\/p>\n

\"Harris<\/a>
Harris on the practice field. He’s still waiting for his first snap from scrimmage in the regular season.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Following a junior season in which he contributed 9.1 points and 5.3 rebounds per outing, Harris blossomed into a force at both ends of the floor during his senior campaign in 2012-13. In addition to scoring in double digits on 12 occasions as a senior, Harris recorded a pair of double doubles and in a game versus IUPUI on February 23, 2013, accounted for 21 points, nine rebounds, three steals and a pair of blocked shots.<\/p>\n

Harris\u2019s outstanding speed and athleticism stood out to scouts and following his career at Milwaukee, he was signed by the Chiefs as an undrafted free agent. He was one of 16 players on the Chiefs\u2019 initial 53-man roster to have been an undrafted free agent.<\/p>\n

\u201cCoach Jeter and the rest of the staff taught me to work hard and never give up,\u201d Harris said. \u201cMy time at Milwaukee helped prepare me for this opportunity. I\u2019m thankful to everyone at 51ÁÔÆæ, but especially to my coaches and professors for preparing me for life after college.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

51ÁÔÆæ men\u2019s basketball player Demetrius Harris is living out a dream by playing professional sports. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":486,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","uwm_wg_additional_authors":[]},"categories":[174],"tags":[],"section":[125,122],"display_categories":[],"related-coverage":[],"uwmnews-feed":[],"class_list":["post-13355","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","section-alumni","section-campus-community"],"yoast_head":"\nMKE Panther turns pro \u2013 in the NFL<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"51ÁÔÆæ men\u2019s basketball player Demetrius Harris is living out a dream by playing professional sports.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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