One of the best individual seasons in the history of Oregon wrestling is unfolding this year, but Eugene Harris will be the last person to tell you about it.
In his senior campaign for the Ducks, Harris has amassed 22 wins and just two losses, with five dual meets remaining on the schedule. This winning percentage of .916 places Harris sixth on the all-time Oregon list.. The Las Vegas native is ranked No. 5 in the country at the 165-pound weight class.
Harris tries to avoid the subject of winning a national championship or achieving one of the best winning percentages in school history.
“I don’t really want to think about that,” he said. “I just try to stay focused on each match.”
Oregon head coach Chuck Kearney and the rest of his coaching staff have tried to instill in Harris the concept of focusing on the present.
“I guess very few times in life the advice is to live in the moment and take care of right now, but that’s what we want him to do,” Kearney said. “When his career is done, and he’s looking back on it all, he can say ‘I did have a great record. I did have a great run at Oregon.’ I hope that he can sit there with a national championship trophy in his lap, but right now we want him to live in the moment and focus on the process and the journey as opposed to the rewards or the destination.”
Not an outwardly vocal leader, Harris heads the wrestling squad by the example he sets in all aspects of the game. Whenever a member of the team is struggling or down, Harris is the first one to come to his aid, Kearney said.
“When you have a guy that sincerely cares about each and every member of the program, that makes him a very powerful force in our room,” Kearney said. “He’s not the kind of guy who will jump up front and lead a charge; he just grabs his gear and gets going.”
Harris has had a few setbacks throughout his career at Oregon, primarily because of knee injuries. Soon after spring term 2001, Harris had surgery on both knees.
The rest of the Oregon team understands what Harris has dealt with, and they appreciate his all-out effort in every drill. Redshirt freshman Shane Webster, who wrestles in the 174-pound weight class just above Harris’ 165-pounds, said every aspect of his wrestling has improved thanks to having the opportunity to drill with Harris.
“It’s a privilege to work out with him,” Webster said. “The way he is wrestling right now, I can see him winning it all.”
Besides wrestling, there are other aspects of Harris’ life that keep him busy. A psychology major and father of a 4-year-old girl, Harris plans to attend graduate school after receiving his degree from Oregon.
Even with the hectic schedule of the wrestling squad and academic responsibilities, Harris still finds time to spend with his daughter. He gives much of the credit of being able to balance his academic, athletic and family life to his supportive girlfriend, who “understands what a wrestler’s life is like.”
Harris is also appreciative of the late Dave Abraham, an Oregon assistant coach who died in May. Abraham told Harris to write down his goals, and Harris has taken this advice to heart, posting motivational notes on his refrigerator and front door.
He also has made a tape that he listens to while training. The tape includes Harris’s own voice encouraging himself to work hard. He said that the impact of these motivational techniques is evident during his matches.
“I don’t really question myself before matches and say, ‘Maybe I might lose’ or ‘What ifs,’” Harris said. “I just know that I am capable of winning, and I just go out and do what I can do. It just happens for me.”
The Ducks next compete on Friday against UC-Bakersfield and Fresno State, where Harris can continue focusing one match at a time.