Anthony Wilson
Arkansas Is Adding Former 28-Year-Old MLB player Monte Harrison to his football squad. Harrison, who was a four-star recruit in the 2014 class, will join the Razorbacks as a wide receiver ahead of the 2024 season, according to 247Sports.
Harrison, who now stands 6-foot-3 and weighs 225 pounds, made an unofficial visit to Fayetteville, Arkansas, in April. 247Sports notes that Harrison also had opportunities to play football at Nebraska and Tennessee before choosing Arkansas.
Ironic, given that Harrison initially signed with the Huskers (to play football) out of Lee’s Summit (Missouri) West High School in 2014. He was the No. 52 wide receiver and No. 7 prospect in the state of Missouri in his class.
“Best pure athlete I’ve ever seen,” says 247Sports’ Michael Bruntz, who covered Harrison as a recruit when he signed with Nebraska in 2014.
But he never prepared for Nebraska. He was selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the second round of that summer’s 2014 MLB Draft and signed a rookie contract with a $1.8 million bonus out of high school. He would spend the next decade bouncing between various minor league farm systems, with brief stints in the major leagues in between.
Here are five things to know about Arkansas’ newest (and oldest) wide receiver.
Major League Contracts Paying Off
247Sports reports that Harrison will use his professional earnings to pay for tuition at Arkansas, allowing him to comfortably play football without the need for a scholarship. The $1.8 million signing bonus he accrued represents the vast majority of the money he earned playing baseball.
According to Spotrac, Harrison boasts a career earnings value of $2,592,449. This number is purely based on contractual information and does not take into account any potential termination clauses or other sources of revenue. He earned $719,375 with the Miami Marlins from 2019-21 and $73,704 with the Los Angeles Angels in 2022.
Keeping up with a busy career
Harrison spent the first four years of his baseball career in the Milwaukee farm system. He joined the Carolina Mudcats, Milwaukee’s Single-A affiliate, in 2017. In January 2018, he was one of four prospects the Brewers traded to the Miami Marlins to obtain outfielder Christian Yelich, who was an All-Star and National League. batting champion in his first two years with the Brewers (2018-19).
He was immediately listed as Miami’s second-best prospect and made his debut in 2018 with Triple-A Jacksonville. He was a 2018 MiLB All-Star and was part of the 2019 All-Star Futures Game.
He made his MLB debut on August 4, 2020 against the Baltimore Orioles. In 2021, Harrison bounced between leagues before being designated for assignment (DFA) in March 2022.
In April 2022, he signed a minor league contract with the Angels, was promoted to the Majors in June, and was DFAed in July. He signed a minor league contract with Milwaukee in 2023 and was released in September.
Making Your Mark as an MLB Player
Harrison had 12 hits in 68 MLB at-bats for a career batting average of .176. This included two home runs and six RBI. Here are some quick insights into Harrison’s professional career:
- He hit his first MLB home run 11 days after being called up. It was against Atlanta Braves reliever Will Smith, and it was the only run Miami scored in a 2-1 loss.
- Harrison had Miami’s most-hit ball of the 2020 season. His double against the New York Mets on August 17 clocked in at 180.6 mph right off the bat.
- He ran against the Chicago Cubs in the 2020 National League Wild Card Series and stole a base.
In the minor leagues, Harrison was known for his speed and range in center field. He was often impressed with incredible catches, including this steal while playing for the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp:
Arkansas would certainly love to see that on the football field.
Harrison has athletic lineage
Harrison isn’t the only professional athlete in his family. His brother, Shaquille Harrison, played college basketball at Tulsa and signed with the NBA G League as an undrafted free agent in 2016.
Shaquille Harrison signed a 10-day contract with the Phoenix Suns in 2018 and made his NBA debut on February 23, 2018. When Monte Harrison made his MLB debut in 2020, he and Shaquille became the sixth brother duo to play in the NBA. and MLB, joining notable figures like Trayce Thompson (New York Mets) and Klay Thompson (Golden State Warriors).
Shaquille played 183 games, starting 23 in eight years in the NBA. He also averaged four minutes per game in 17 playoff appearances.
Baseball stars are nothing new to Arkansas football
Arkansas has an extensive history of multi-sport athletes, especially when it comes to two-time baseball players. Cole Barthel played baseball from 2001 to 2005 before joining Arkansas as a 22-year-old true freshman quarterback.
Former Razorbacks quarterback Barry Lunney Jr., who is now the offensive coordinator at Illinois, played football and baseball for the Hawgs. Connor Noland followed a similar path at Arkansas in 2019 before focusing exclusively on baseball later in his career.
D’Von McClure’s story is most similar to Harrison’s. He signed to play baseball at Arkansas in 2011, but was selected in the 2012 MLB Draft and spent four seasons in the minors. He returned to the Razorbacks in 2016 as a linebacker and actually started six games for Nickelback in 2018. His brother, DeShone, even played in the NBA G League.
