At the early age of five, Anthony J. Harris crazed every waking moment to tote a football in hand. He was driven with the passion to play in the NFL, so he played football in the parks, on the front lawn, and anywhere he could find grass in Ft. Pierce, Florida. His determination and willingness to sacrifice aided him to execute his position with the sport not only on the field, but also triumphantly gaining knowledge and wisdom of the art of the game.
Anthony graduated from Westwood High School in 1991 located in Fort Pierce as an All American & All County player holding position on the field as an Outside Linebacker and Running back. During his high school career, Anthony understood the importance of academia, and began to absorb the philosophy that “without an education football would not and could not exist”. In the 9th grade he quickly gained a life-long lesson when his parents requested that he withdraw from football due to his decline in grades. His mother realized that his grades needed to be higher and Anthony needed to be challenged in order to be recruited by a top university. As a result of his academic determination and his captivating football talent, Anthony obtained a full scholarship to Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama.
Anthony received many scholarships from Division I Universities such as: University of Florida, Florida State University, University of Miami, Ohio State University and University of Michigan; to name a few. Anthony chose Auburn University as instruction of higher learning to groom his football skills and to obtain his Bachelor of Science in business administration.
He strongly believed that Auburn was the perfect match to achieve his personal goals: he wanted visible national exposure and he believed in Auburn had his best interest at heart. While at Auburn he achieved several accolades such as the following: in 1993 Anthony helped lead Auburn University to receive their 1st SEC Championship and the 1st undefeated season in Auburn’s history, he posted career totals 400 tackles including 20 for loss, and 14 sacks and tackle ranks 4th in Auburn History.
In 1996 his dream became a reality when he signed the dotted line to become a Linebacker for the Miami Dolphins led by Coach Jimmy Johnson. In the beginning of Anthony’s NFL career, he was not a starting player; this drove him to reach higher aspirations. He excelled and reached that plateau of being an actual player and became a starter and be a big part of that team success. He played alongside those teammates: Zach Thomas, Jason Taylor, Derrick Rodgers and Sam Madison. After his reign with the Dolphins, he moved on to Green Bay and then the Cleveland Browns; ending his professional career in 2003.
Anthony clearly understood while playing football on the NFL level that a professional career in football would not last forever. In August 2004, Anthony Harris became the Head Football Coach, Dean of Students and Track Coach at Parkway Academy Charter High School in Miramar, Florida.
Since 2005, he has been an active member and volunteer of the Urban League of Greater Miami, Inc. He is also a motivational speaker and mentor that has transformed the lives of many impressionable youth in South Florida
He currently serves as a consultant for the Urban League of Greater Miami, Inc. for the Crime Prevention Contracts of the Florida Office of the Attorney General and Florida Consortium of Urban League Affiliates..
He now Heads an administration staff as the Dean of Discipline at Excelsior charter academy in Miami Gardens, as well as Coach youth football in Davie Florida for the Davie Broncos!
His passion for coaching and mentoring today’s youth is what drives him daily, coaching and mentoring them on/off the field with the clear understanding not all athletes reach the highest goal of playing Professionally but with hard work and determination and a foundation of Believing in God All things are possible!