Connor EaregoodThe Detroit News
As Derrick Harmon waited for his name to be called in the NFL Draft’s opening round Thursday, he sat surrounded by family and friends. But one person was missing: his mother, Tiffany Saine, who is in the hospital on life support.
When the Pittsburgh Steelers announced Harmon as their 21st overall pick to select the Detroit-raised Harmon, he picked up the phone with a range of emotions in a “bittersweet” moment, he told reporters, because his mother couldn’t be there. But he’s headed up to the hospital to tell her that her son is a first-round NFL draft pick.
The Detroit-raised Harmon, a defensive tackle, played his first three seasons with Michigan State before spending last season at Oregon. He attended Loyola High School.
Harmon credits his mother, a survivor of multiple brain injuries, for inspiring him in football.
"She did not give up,” Harmon told reporters. “She still took me to practice, still went to work. Always the back in my head from the beginning of my college career, was, why can't I keep going? If I'm tired, I'm injured — whatever it is — why can't I keep going, if she can?"
More: Derrick Harmon, Detroit Loyola product, sees NFL Draft stock soar after season at Oregon
Being a first-round draft pick was a long way away when Harmon stepped foot in East Lansing as a three-star prospect out of high school. He committed to Michigan State because he loved being around its coaching staff under former head coach Mel Tucker. In his college career, the 6-foot-5, 310-pound Harmon proved to be an effective run blocker and threat in the pass rush. After recording just one tackle his redshirt freshman year, Harmon recorded 28 tackles and two sacks his first year in a prominent role in the rotation. He followed that up with 40 tackles and 1½ sacks in 2023.
That 2023 season saw Tucker fired midseason after sexual misconduct allegations. With Michigan State's staff and roster in for a rebuild, Harmon hit the transfer portal and landed at an immediate championship contender: Oregon.
With the Ducks, Harmon maintained his high level of production with 45 tackles, and he factored into the pass rush more than ever with five sacks. His 11 tackles for loss set a career high — in fact, they tallied four more than his entire career total. He also led all defensive tackles with 55 quarterback pressures, according to PFF.
Harmon and the Ducks won a Big Ten championship in a 45-37 win over Penn State before losing to eventual national champion Ohio State in the College Football Playoff quarterfinal.
Harmon was mocked as a late first-round pick throughout the NFL Draft process. In limited drills at the NFL Scouting Combine, Harmon ran a 4.95 second 40-yard dash and a 1.74 10-yard split.
Harmon won’t be the only Spartan with Pittsburgh, where Connor Heyward has played tight end and fullback for the past three seasons. Heyward, 26, played for Michigan State from 2017 to 2021. His brother, Cameron Heyward, is the Steelers’ top defensive lineman and third-highest paid player on the roster. He turns 36 this May, and advocated publicly on Instagram Live for Pittsburgh to select Harmon. It’s safe to say Harmon will be his protege, as he told reporters at the combine he models his game after the Steelers’ four-time All-Pro.
"He has Steeler DNA,” Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin told reporters. “For us it starts inside and up front.”
Before Harmon, Cameron Heyward was the most recent defensive lineman picked by Pittsburgh in the first round of the NFL Draft, selected 31st out of Ohio State. in 2011. The most recent true defensive tackle was Evander Hood in 2009, selected 32nd, out of Missouri.
cearegood@detroitnews.com
@ConnorEaregood
