Hardison had his best year as asenior, 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 playcollege football for theNew Mexico Military Institute Broncos.[4]
As a truefreshman at New Mexico Military Institute, Hardison appeared in five games and totaled 408 passing yards, four touchdowns and fourinterceptions while completing 38-of-67 attempts.[6] He transferred to play for theUTEP 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 theCOVID-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 undergoingTommy John surgery in November, which caused him to miss the remainder of the season.[15]
Hardison is the son of Chad and June Hardison. He has one brother.[21] His father, Chad, was a retiredfirefighter who worked for the Hobbs Fire Department for 21 years and then spent two years atUniversity of the Southwest as a strength coach for all teams on campus.[22]
