JACKSONVILLE – His first impressions have been good impressions.
"I love Jacksonville," Anton Harrison said.
That's how the Jaguars' first-round selection in the 2023 NFL Draft feels about his new city – and his new team, too. The right tackle discussed those topics and others when joining senior writer John Oehser on this week's O-Zone Podcast, saying of the month since the Jaguars made him the No. 27 overall selection:
"Things slowed down. I'm finally getting back to what I love and that's playing football. Getting here, being here, playing football, being around great guys, learning the game, bettering myself … it has been great. Then my family's been behind me this whole time, so just been loving it."
Harrison, who played collegiately at Oklahoma, said of Jacksonville: "It's fitting for me. It's a good place to be -- good weather. It's not too crazy, but if you want to get out a little bit you can. I'm a chill guy. This is definitely somewhere I'm glad to be."
Harrison said he watched the Jaguars last season as they won the AFC South title and followed them during the postseason. That made the phone call he received on draft night good news.
"They're on the up," he said. "I'd say that was big. When I saw that 904 area code called my phone, I was just happy."
Harrison, like the rest of the Jaguars' 13-member 2023 NFL Draft class, is participating in 2023 organized team activities at TIAA Bank Field. He is working next to right guard Brandon Scherff, who made five Pro Bowls with Washington from 2016-2021 – and who Harrison watched closely while growing up in Washington.
"Playing beside him right now is great," Harrison said. "He's always saying, 'No questions are dumb questions,' so he is always just helping me out with anything and trying to have me out there playing freely and playing my best."
Harrison added of the Jaguars' offensive line, "That group is great. That group is real close, a real family group, so I feel like I could ask anybody in that group a question. They willing to help me. That's what I love about that group, just to see everybody's drive to get better.
"We're always pushing each other, just having fun with it and loving the game."
Listen to the entire O-Zone Podcast with Anton Harrison below. To hear more episodes of the O-Zone Podcast, click HERE.
