Josh Harris isn't your typical first-year Big Ten baseball player.
Start with his age.
He turns 26 on July 17. When he was finishing up at Beecher High School at age 17, some of his current teammates were still in grade school.
Other differences exist, too.
The left-handed pitcher in his first season with the Illinois baseball team served in the Marines, including two deployments overseas.
Harris spent the 2018 season at Kankakee Community College. In 19 1 / 3 innings, he had 34 strikeouts while going 2-1 with eight saves.
His performance got the attention of Illinois coach Dan Hartleb and Illinois pitching coach Drew Dickinson.