Brandon Harper is a senior on the Noble football team, where he starts on both sides of the ball at the wide receiver and cornerback positions. Harper has contributed on the field since his freshman season and returns for his final season after recording a team-high 93 catches, 1,486 yards and 18 touchdowns last season. The leading receiver on the team, Harper’s most impressive stat came with what he did once he caught the ball. Out of Harper’s nearly 1,500 receiving yards, nearly 1,100 came after the catch.
“He transitions so well from the catch to runner,” coach Greg George said. “There were many times last season watching him catch screens and go 70 yards for a score.”
In a huge district game at Ardmore last season, Harper made two big plays in overtime to defeat the then undefeated Tigers and keep their district title hopes alive. After the Tigers scored on their first overtime drive, Noble did the same, as Harper took a short pass and extended the ball just barely over the pylon. Noble’s coaching staff then elected to put the ball in Harper’s hands and go for the win. The next play, Harper streaked across the middle of the field, catching a pass in stride and sprinted untouched into the end zone to give Noble it’s biggest win of the season.
“[Brandon’s] the type of player who wants the ball in the biggest and most critical times,” George said. “He is a guy who practices as hard as he plays on Friday night.”
On defense, the team’s MVP added three interceptions, returning two of them for touchdowns in 2021. Harper plans to continue playing football at the next level with offers from Houston Baptist, East Central, and other school showing interest.
Outside of athletics, Harper was a counselor this summer at Royal Family Kids Camp, which is a camp for children who may have experienced abuse or trauma in their homes.
“We do stuff like go fishing or anything to get the kids away from whatever they’re going through at home,” Harper said. “I thought it was cool because all the kids looked up to me, and I could tell how much I impacted them. It really makes you realize how blessed some of us really are.”
Harper credits his mom, Brooke, for his inspiration on and off the field.
“She’s been there for me through everything and is like my best friend, and I don’t know what I’d do without her,” Harper said. “She’s made a big impact on my life, and I think following in her footsteps on just being a good person will help me a lot in the future and get me to where I want to go.”
