Gavin Glen Hardison (born May 15, 2000)[1] is an American professional football quarterback who is a free agent. He played college football for the New Mexico Military Institute Broncos and the UTEP Miners.
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born: | May 15, 2000[1] Hobbs, New Mexico, U.S. |
| Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Weight: | 215 lb (98 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Hobbs (Hobbs, New Mexico) |
| College: | New Mexico Military (2018) UTEP (2019–2023) |
| Position: | Quarterback |
| Undrafted: | 2024 |
| Career history | |
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |
Early life
editBorn in Hobbs, New Mexico, Hardison attended Hobbs High School and graduated from there in 2018.[2] After seeing limited action at quarterback as a sophomore, he became a starter as a junior and threw for 3,276 yards and 33 touchdowns.[3]
Hardison had his best year as a senior, leading Hobbs to a 9–3 record and reaching the state quarterfinals while throwing for a New Mexico state record 5,357 passing yards on 332 completions, additionally setting the school record with 59 passing touchdowns on his way to being named NMPreps.com New Mexico Quarterback of the Year and the state's Mr. Football.[4][5] He committed to play college football for the New Mexico Military Institute Broncos.[4]
College career
editAs a true freshman at New Mexico Military Institute, Hardison appeared in five games and totaled 408 passing yards, four touchdowns and four interceptions while completing 38-of-67 attempts.[6] He transferred to play for the UTEP Miners after one season at New Mexico Military Institute.[7]
In his first year at UTEP, Hardison appeared in two games and completed 27-of-61 pass attempts for 335 yards, having a long of 36 and one touchdown pass with no interceptions thrown.[8] The following season, he won a position battle and became the team's starting quarterback.[9][10] He ended up starting all seven games in the COVID-19-shortened season, posting 1,419 passing yards, five touchdowns and five interceptions while completing 108-of-199 pass attempts.[6]
Hardison remained a starter in 2021 and improved, starting all 13 games and being named honorable mention all-conference while having the fifth-most single season passing yards in program history; he ended the year having completed 198-of-357 passes, throwing for 3,217 yards and 18 touchdowns.[6][11][12][13] In 2022, Hardison appeared in 10 games before suffering a season-ending injury, having finished with 164 pass completions on 315 attempts for 2,044 yards and 11 touchdowns along with eight interceptions.[14]
Hardison returned as a starter for his redshirt senior season in 2023.[14] He appeared in only five games before undergoing Tommy John surgery in November, which caused him to miss the remainder of the season.[15]
Professional career
editOn April 27, 2024, Hardison signed with the Miami Dolphins as an undrafted free agent after he was not selected in the 2024 NFL draft.[16][17] He was waived by the Dolphins on July 27.[18]
Personal life
editHardison is the son of Chad and June Hardison. He has one brother.[19]
References
edit- ^ a b "2024 NFL Draft Prospect Database". establishtherun.com. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
- ^ "Gavin Hardison". UTEP Miners.
- ^ "Gavin Hardison's (Hobbs, NM) High School Football Stats". MaxPreps.com.
- ^ a b "Hobbs Eagles quarterback was named top quarterback". Hobbs News-Sun. January 6, 2018.
- ^ Grine, Joshua (January 8, 2018). "Football: 2017 New Mexico Mr. Football". Rivals.com.
- ^ a b c Craven, Mike (August 5, 2022). "The Lone Star 50: No. 22 UTEP QB Gavin Hardison headlines Miners offense". Dave Campbell's Texas Football.
- ^ Bloomquist, Bret (July 23, 2019). "UTEP Miners football team adds transfer quarterbacks Hardison, Bravo, tight end Trussell". El Paso Times.
- ^ "Former Eagle up for starting QB role at UTEP". Hobbs News-Sun. August 12, 2020.
- ^ Morgan, Andy (August 24, 2020). "UTEP moving forward with Hardison as starting quarterback, Brownholtz as backup". KTSM-TV.
- ^ Bloomquist, Bret (October 10, 2020). "Hardison living up to billing for UTEP". El Paso Times. p. B1, B2 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Guzman, Sam (July 28, 2022). "UTEP Football opens fall camp with highest expectations of Dimel era". KTSM-TV.
- ^ Bloomquist, Bret (December 18, 2021). "Hardison Continues Journey To Stardom". El Paso Times. p. B1, B3 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Deaver, Colin (August 11, 2022). "UTEP Fall Camp Burning Questions: Can Gavin Hardison make 'the leap?'". KTSM-TV.
- ^ a b Guzman, Sam (July 30, 2023). "UTEP's Hardison, Smith ready to level up long-time on-field connection". KTSM-TV.
- ^ "Record-Setting QB Recovering From Elbow Surgery Visits Packers". si.com. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
- ^ "REPORT: Miami Dolphins Signing UTEP QB Gavin Hardison As UDFA". si.com. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
- ^ "Miami Dolphins Sign 12 Undrafted College Free Agents". MiamiDolphins.com. May 10, 2024.
- ^ "Miami Dolphins sign linebacker Curtis Bolton, waive Gavin Hardison". cbsnews.com. Retrieved July 28, 2024.
- ^ "Gavin Hardison - Football". UTEP Miners. Retrieved June 7, 2024.