Alex Golesh, the head coach of University of South Florida Football, has announced the hiring of Harding Harper as the executive director of recruiting and personnel for the USF Football program.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Harding to the USF family,” Golesh stated. “He brings experience from several top-tier programs and has the leadership skills necessary to enhance our recruiting efforts. He is a fantastic addition to our staff as we aim to develop a competitive roster that can face anyone in the nation.”
Harper, who played linebacker at Vanderbilt from 2012 to 2015, joins USF after previous positions at Alabama, Colorado, Houston, and his alma mater.
For the 2024 season, Harper served as the director of college scouting at Vanderbilt, helping the Commodores achieve a 7-6 record and win the Birmingham Bowl. He returned to Nashville after spending a season as the assistant director of player personnel at Alabama, where he contributed to securing the nation’s No. 2 recruiting class in December 2023. He had also worked as the assistant director of player personnel at Houston in 2022 and spent the 2021 season scouting for Colorado.
Additionally, Harper has coaching experience at Lycoming College (linebackers coach), Missouri (graduate assistant), and Centennial High School in Atlanta, where he was the assistant defensive coordinator, coached linebackers, and served as the recruiting coordinator. He played linebacker for Vanderbilt during two of the most successful seasons in school history, with the team winning nine games and a bowl game in both his freshman and sophomore years.
In 2024, USF closed its second consecutive winning season with a second straight bowl victory, triumphing over San Jose State 41-39 in a dramatic five-overtime game at the Hawai’i Bowl on December 24. The Bulls are among only 15 teams to have achieved a bowl or College Football Playoff victory in each of the last two seasons and are the only team to have scored 40 or more points in both of those wins.
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