James Hardy (American football)
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| Buffalo Bills — No. 81 | |
| Wide Receiver | |
| Date of birth: December 24, 1985 | |
| Place of birth: Fort Wayne, Indiana | |
| Height: 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | Weight: 220 lb (100 kg) |
| National Football League debut | |
|---|---|
| No regular season or postseason appearances | |
| Career history | |
| College: Indiana | |
| NFL Draft: 2008 / Round: 2 / Pick: 41 | |
Teams:
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| Current status: Active | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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James W. Hardy III (born December 24, 1985 in Fort Wayne, Indiana) is an American football wide receiver for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League. He played collegiately for the Indiana Hoosiers.
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[edit] Elmhurst High School
Hardy went to Elmhurst High School, playing football and basketball. As a senior, he posted 34 catches for 710 yards and 10 touchdowns. He was named a Class 4A all-state selection by the Indiana Football Coaches Association. As a basketball player, he was runner-up in the Mr. Basketball voting and an Indiana All-Star. He also holds the city scoring record for Fort Wayne, with over 2,000 points during his four years at Elmhurst. The dynamic duo of the James and Joe Show (James Hardy and Joe Poindexter) led Elmhurst to a state championship appearance in 2003. However, Elmhurst was defeated by Bishop Chatard High School from Indianapolis.
[edit] Indiana Hoosiers
Hardy redshirted as a true freshman in 2004. As a redshirt freshman in 2005, he posted 61 catches for 893 yards and 10 touchdowns. His play earned him a Freshman All-America selection.
Hardy followed his stellar freshman season with an equally impressive sophomore year. Hardy hauled in 51 passes for 722 yards and 10 touchdowns and was named second team All-Big Ten for the second straight year. His 20 career receiving touchdowns in his first two years had tied him with Ernie Jones (1984-1987) for second on the university's all-time list, trailing only Jade Butcher (1967-1969) and his 30 career TD grabs.
At 6'7" and 220 pounds, Hardy as a junior caught 74 catches for 1,075 yards -- ranking third in the Big Ten in both categories -- and became the Hoosiers' all-time receiving leader in touchdowns (36), yards (2,690) and receptions (186). If Hardy would have stayed at Indiana, he would have almost certainly shattered the Big Ten Conference record for TD receptions (39) currently held by Braylon Edwards. He was selected first team All-Big Ten selection, a Fred Biletnikoff Award semifinalist and the team's most valuable player.[1]
Hardy also played on the Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team for two years before focusing only on football.
[edit] Buffalo Bills
In January 2008, Hardy declared himself eligible for the 2008 NFL Draft, saying "I have reached the pinnacle of my college football career". [1] At the NFL combine Hardy earned Top Performer status (top 10 of your position) in the following categories: the bench press, the broad jump, the 3-cone drill, and the 20-yard shuttle. In the bench press Hardy finished 9th among WRs with 18 reps at 225 pounds. Hardy finished 8th in the broad jump with a distance of 10'5". He finished 7th in the 3-cone drill with a time of 6.84 seconds. He also finished tied for 7th in the 20-yard shuttle with a time of 4.20 seconds. This display of quickness from such a big wide receiver lead to his draft stock rising. [2] Hardy went in the second round of the draft, 41st overall, to the Buffalo Bills.
[edit] External links
- James Hardy Indiana Hoosier Bio
- Three Hoosiers Collect All-America Honors
- Hardy to enter NFL draft Indianapolis Star, 5 January 2008
- 2008 NFL Draft Scouting Report
[edit] References
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