The first recorded liftoff occurred on Nov. 21, 2014. Buried in a blowout loss, Najee Harris attempted what is now his signature move for the first time. Then just a sophomore in high school, Harris was already known for his punishing rushing style. However, this time was different. Instead of lowering his shoulders and running through a tackle, the powerful back took a more innovative route past his defender.
This time, he flew.
“Just out of nowhere he decided to jump over somebody,” said Marcus Malu, who trained Harris back in Antioch, Calif. “He cleared him, and that was the start of it. I was like, ‘Oh no, this is going to be bad.’”
Since then, Harris has made a habit of posterizing unsuspecting defenders. The Alabama back claimed his most recent victim last week as Arkansas State’s Darreon Jackson went for his legs near the right sideline. The 6-foot defensive back came up empty-handed as Harris easily cleared him before pirouetting out of bounds.
"Man, he'll hurdle somebody just about every day, or he attempts to,” Alabama safety Deionte Thompson said. “I'm just like, 'Man!' For that big of a guy to jump over people my height, your height, it's just something you don't see every day. As his teammate, I'd prefer he just stay on the ground, just because I don't want any freak accidents out there. But he does what he has to do."
LINK
https://alabama.rivals.com/news/the-history-behind-najee-harris-hurdles
