Readers deserve to hear about more Ja’kobe “Hurricane” Harris than his sizzling season of touchdowns because this kid has overcome more than most of us could ever bear.

You’ll appreciate that Ja’kobe is kind with a capital K off the field, as much as he is a killer with a capital K on the grid iron.

Being respectful defines J-Harris. How many kids will still ask their parent, “Dad, can I go down to the store to grab a bite?” With too many kids nowadays you just hear the door slam to know they left.

Prep football fans are noticing that J-Harris is a skyrocketing recruit. His obscene stats remind one a lil bit of Barry Sanders in that late blooming senior season where B-Sanders went on a tear of 1,700 yards for the second half of his season.

Ja’kobe has helped power Tennyson High in Hayward, located near San Francisco, to an 8-2 record, finishing with 28 TD’s, rolling into the playoffs on fire fire.

How’d he get his nickname Hurricane Harris you ask?

His family had to move away from from New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, so the family spent time going back and forth between Oakland and Dallas since then.

Growing up, Ja’kobe had the love of his big bro Tariq. You could always find them on the couch playing 2K or Madden on their PS4 together.

That is until a year and a half ago when Tariq was sadly shot to death. To make matters worse for Ja’kobe, well, I’ll let Ja’kobe’s caring father Abdul Harris share about the things J has overcome, “Nine months before his brother Tariq was killed, his other older brother Jabari was sentenced to 10 years.

“Kobe was 14 years old at the time. Then 8 months after Tariq’s murder his brother Jeremy that was only 4 years older than Kobe was locked up and sentenced to 4 years!!

“So Kobe was left to be the big brother to his youngest brother Justice, now age 7, and to choose a better path!

“Kobe was 2 years old when I was sentenced to 17 years hard labor for distribution of drugs in 2004. Hurricane Katrina hit a year later and then Hurricane Rita hit the penitentiary I was housed in.

“So I lost all contact with my kids and family. Five years later the truth comes out and the judge ruled in my favor and overturned my sentence. Kobe was just 8 years old when I started teaching him this game we know as gridiron!

“I figured if I could mature and speed up the development of his mind that it would give him an advantage over other kids. And that it did!

“My older kids were lost in those 5 years of my incarceration. Meanwhile Kobe held on to my prison achievements and would be so excited when I would send home awards.”

How devastating to lose your child, can you imagine?

How does Abdul cope? I’ll let him explain, “Both Tariq and Ja'kobe tried to impress me growing up, Ja'kobe on the field and Tariq in the streets. We all feel the loss of Tariq’s love, his smile, and his voice filling the house.

“Tariq would’ve been so proud of Ja’kobe’s performances, the way he’s carried himself this year, aiming for 30 TD’s and 1,500 yards. My boys dreamed and talked about this happening. It’s a promise made and a promise kept to Tariq, who always encouraged his brother to strive to be his best.”

Why is Ja’kobe so inspirational to me?

Look at what he’s overcome. How many of us could unlock our potential after losing so much in their life like that?

Ja’kobe didn’t have nearly as much production from his freshman to junior year. But dedicating himself to his dream, dedicating this season to his brother, finding that focus has been the trick this year.

Ja’kobe has so much talent on the field. Dude is Flash Gordon, bouncy, a technique savvy runner that has had games of 6 TDs vs. strong prep programs like Oakland Tech.

Crazy part? J-Harris also plays quarterback and corner on defense each game. He had all these games where he not only gets multiple picks but also throws for TD’s.

Hear his dad explain how proud he is of him, “Ja’kobe is a Swiss army knife, to use his right arm when going one direction, left arm going another to channel his body, which is 6-2, 180 lb speeding down the field.”

Ja’kobe inspires me for all that he has overcome; he’s the epitome of Maya Angelou’s Still I Rise.

“You may shoot me with your words,

You may cut me with your eyes,

You may kill me with your hatefulness,

But still, like air, I’ll rise.”

And has J-Harris ever risen in the air for epic game after game of performances on the grid iron.

Who else deserves much credit for helping Ja’kobe?

Anthony Jackson, the 42 year old campus supervisor at Tennyson. Also the football coach, “Coach Jacks” is a real one that helps all kids on campus get straight.

Man, I love this guy. He’s like the dopest kind of person that J-Harris needed as he moved to Cali from Texas last year.

Coach Jacks had already laid down the groundwork for Tennyson’s strong D and uptempo O. He just needed that one guy, and then in walks Mr J-Harris.

I’ll let Coach Jacks explain how much Ja’kobe means to him, “Love that kid. I appreciate him like he’s my own son. I remember after meeting him and seeing him pull down top grades, I told him how great it was that he’s not doing drugs. That’s irregular in Oakland.

“[I told him] don’t let yourself down and be the regular that others settle for in themselves to be all around you. ‘Inspire others to rise up to your own standard bro.’ I truly think he’ll change the world through his game. I believe in him 100.”

Coach Jacks is close to Marshawn Lynch, the NFL great whom he used to coach as a youngster. Marshawn happened to come to watch Tennyson play his old high school team, Oakland Tech.

I’ll let Coach Jacks describe what happened, “After the game, Marshawn took the time to congratulate and talk to Ja’kobe a lil bit.

“Marshawn was messing with me because we like to play around and he told me playfully, ‘Y’all was weak.’ I told him, we did happen to win right bro?’

“Then Marshawn, who usually never speaks big on a kid’s talent, he told me a compliment about Ja'kobe, “Y’all got a real boy in Ja’kobe, y’all got a bad boy in him.”

Coach Jacks didn’t pass that compliment on to Ja'kobe, not wanting Ja’kobe to lose focus or let such praise get to his head.

I was real to Coach Jacks and said thanks for letting me know what was said and understood his thought process.

But I told him I thought Ja’kobe was special, so hard working and motivated, that if J was told Marshawn’s compliment, it wouldn’t lessen his drive. So educator to educator, Anthony just let the truth fall out his mouth and graciously allowed me to use the quote.

Why else is Ja’kobe so dope?

It’s not just that dude is electric on the field, like when he made a 78 yard run to the endzone in a game. All the other players on the field seemed like they were in slow-mo as that play lasted a mind bending 40 seconds.

It was featured on USA Today as TD Run of the Year:

Click here for Ja'kobe's TD run of the year video

Is it that Ohio State football tweets Ja’kobe recruitment love that makes him fly? J has been getting recruitment interest from at least a dozen programs ranging from Pac-12 to all kinds of programs across the country.

But the real reason he’s like the man to E-Woods?

It’s how this ultra sweet kid spends his free time. J spends so much of his spare time trying to save dogs and cats in his neighborhood. He lives for them and even wants to open an animal shelter when he grows up.

#blessings on blessings

Ja’kobe will see a lost dog sign and he’ll just drop everything and spend hours to search and search to find the dog. He hears about a stray in the street, he finds them a home no doubt.

I’ll let J-Harris explain his passion, “I personally like pit bulls but no matter the breed, I’ll always want to find a place for dogs and for cats to be loved. I’m always asking around for who is in need of a dog to love, to be good to.

“That’s just me, and it starts with one person, someone who wants to make a difference. That person might as well be me. I also love to help the homeless. My family, we’re always going out to feed folks at our local church.

“I’ll stop by tent city, located by the 880 intersection and just drop off some food we made at home for those who don’t have anything to eat. That’s just me.”

More real Ja’kobe? This youngster spends his time studying cheetah anatomy. He’s fascinated by all kinds of animals and how they live and operate. He wants to be an animal researcher when he grows up.

Ja’kobe wants to thrive in college football, repeat on that level what he’s done this whole senior year. He dreams to be in the NFL, be a player like his idol, Odell Beckham Jr.

Hear what he thinks of Beckham “I love the way Odell catches and goes up strong without fear. He’s careful and makes sure not to open himself up for injury.

"I like playing all kinds of positions on the field in high school but in college I’ll focus on just being a running back or running the slot. It’ll be time to specialize.”

Now do you see why this story is more than football?

His dad, Abdul Harris, l see so much goodness in him. He reminds me of my own uncle Robin Woods who, despite being in prison off and on till age 30, lived his dream.

Prison didn’t define him, he was highly intelligent and made a vow to realize his potential. Robin stayed true to his promise to himself like Abdul vowed to make the world a better place out of prison, and like Ja’kobe vowed to dedicate his season to Tariq.

Robin? Became a rookie public defender at age 37, just 7 years to the day he woke up with the epiphany. I’m so proud that Robin put in 18 hour days for 7 years straight to become a lawyer.

Robin even successfully defended a person charged with a death penalty case, and untold others. Ja’kobe put in work, his dad too, nothing comes unless work is put in.

Abdul is electric and convincing on his feelings about redemption, “There are some that get a second chance.

“I love how people try to stereotype me only to find out how many communities I have helped build up since being freed. Or just the mere fact that I now work for the school district as a campus supervisor and its high school coach.”

Abdul is you and me, finally allowed to live free. But how many of us are unjustly denied the American Dream?

I asked Ja’kobe what he might tell Tariq when he goes back to Dallas and visits his graveside. He answered, “I did all this stuff for us bro, we talked about it happening.

“I remember you pumping me up, telling me how if I hit the weight room more, got in more endurance runs, that’s all I would need if I just believed in myself the way you already did about me.

“When I run, Tariq, I feel you bro running beside me on the field, looking at me, cheering me on. That’s why I’m not going to be stopped because I have your spirit in me. We all miss you bro.”

Ja’kobe is a special talent and person but he’s just like any 17 year old who listens to rapper XXX, plays around with his buddies. But with the vast expectations that come along with his tearing-up season, what might he achieve? 40 TD’s?

More than that he’s 17 years old with 80% of his life left to live, life left to dedicate to a brother he’ll never forget.

Why won’t I ever forget Hurricane Harris?

Dude is stone cold on the field and off in his own way. Someone to be proud to know, that you can tell is destined for greatness. We might not see a player put together a season like this for quite a while.

So go out and see Ja’kobe “Hurricane” Harris for yourself. Call him a good boy for his good deeds, a bad boy for how he does work on the field.

Call him what his proud dad calls him, “A kid that had every negative influence you could think of around him and yet he took a different route. His story deserves the truth to be known, it should be told to inspire others who are going through the same thing.”

So now you know the kid behind the big numbers, the kid with a big smile, who’s missing his big brother. And that’s the real deal to root for indeed.