WOAY – WVU Athletics announced Friday that the #9 football jersey will be retired in honor of Major Harris. An on-field ceremony is planned for November 6 during the Oklahoma State game.
Regarded as one of the greatest quarterbacks in WVU history, Harris came to Morgantown from the Pittsburgh area, and started three years for the Mountaineers. His breakout game came in Week 5 of the 1987 season against East Carolina, as he would throw for 1,200 yards and 10 touchdowns that year. The following season, Harris played a major role in the Mountaineers going undefeated during the regular season. He accounted for 2,525 yards of total offense and 20 touchdowns as the Mountaineers went 11-1, only losing to Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl.
Harris topped 2,000 passing yards in 1989 before leaving WVU to enter the NFL Draft. He finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting in 1988, and third in 1989. His career totals include 7,334 total yards of offense, and Harris is one of just a few quarterbacks in Division I history to pass for more than 5,000 yards and rush for more than 2,000 yards during his career.
#9 will be the fifth WVU number to be retired, following #21 (Ira “Rat” Rodgers), #75 (Sam Huff), #77 (Bruce Bosley), and #90 (Darryl Talley). Isaiah Esdale currently wears #9 for WVU, and he can still wear that number for the remainder of his playing career, but the number will go into permanent retirement afterward.
