The Cardinal Countdown: 21 Days Until Kickoff

2021 Season Recap: Harper was another late transfer for the Cards coming in to help bolster the (wait for it) secondary. The staff put a heavy emphasis on this spot grabbing Riley, Brownlee, Griffin, and Harper to help stack the deck after losing some depth and seeing some talent gaps from what they had in ‘21. Harper comes to the Cards as one of the top FCS players at his position last year, earning multiple All-American honors and OVC Defensive Player of The Year for Jacksonville State. I’ve seen multiple people point to the correlation between Harper and Q Cole who the Cards brought in last year, and that seemed to work pretty well. It is notable that Harper had an offer from App State coming out of high school in 2018. I feel like I know who was running that program back then….but I can’t recall off the top of my visor.

2022 Season Outlook: Harper, like four or five other guys, is all up in the mix for being in the rotation at safety this year. If you read my post on Duncan back on Day 27 you know I’m a big fan of his and think he is the guy at this position at least to start, but having Harper as the backup is a big advantage as you can count on him to bring multiple years of experience at the spot and slide in and support when needed in nickel or dime packages with several DBs. The other advantage to bringing in Harper is that he still has two seasons of eligibility. Some quality PT this year could really benefit him in stepping into that spot next season. The staff did a good job getting a mix of some transfers that can make an immediate impact and guys who can contribute for two/three years. I’m not pointing fingers, but the staff is still looking to balance out many positions on defense from the challenging roster management of the previous regime. I think they are finally getting there, just need the players to perform.

Sweet Tweet:

Thanks Nicario….appreciate you. Wasn’t sure you even knew it was my birthday today, but thank you for your kind- …whats that, boss….....you weren’t talking to me? Oh, okay. I’ll just be over here if you need me….sobbing.