Aug 22, 2021 10 min read

Once Darrell Harding was loose and in open space, he became one of the most dangerous and prolific running backs in Washington County and Pennsylvania history.

In his four-year football career at Charleroi High School, he eclipsed what was then a magical 4,000 rushing yards and became the WPIAL’s all-time leading rusher.

Cleary, Harding was beyond special.

He was a member of the 1992 Pennsylvania Big 33 team and went on to play at the University of Cincinnati, where he found playing time as a freshman and sophomore and was primed to be a Bearcats’ starting running back as a junior.

A coaching change at Cincinnati prompted a new philosophy. Rick Minter, brought in from Notre Dame where he was an assistant, wanted to feature a bigger-body-type in the backfield.

He asked Harding to switch to cornerback. It was a tough pill to swallow, but Harding agreed and performed well as a defensive back for two years.

The move though likely cost him a legitimate chance to play in the NFL.

“I honestly do think he had what it took to be an NFL running back or at least be given the chance to become one,” said former NFL quarterback Charlie Batch, who played at Steel Valley. “One thing, I didn’t know the circumstances of the position change. I would have loved to see how Darrell’s career played out if the coach at Cincinnati had kept him at running back.

“I do know now that Darrell did the team (in Minter’s mind) a favor in making the move. But I wish he would have had the chance to see what would have happened if he remained at running back. He was great to watch. There were not many in high school ever like him.”

Harding’s football journey began in Donora playing Midget League for the Dragons.

The rich tradition of Donora athletes was never lost on Harding. He is a cousin to the baseball-famous Griffeys.

“I grew up in Donora,” Harding said. “I lived some time on Pittsburgh’s South Side and eventually I ended up in Charleroi. I lived in Donora five or six years. We made stops in Carnegie and Washington. Basically, I lived all around the Mon Valley. But the bulk of the time, it was Donora and Charleroi.

“I got my football start with the Donora Dragons. Then we moved to Charleroi. We played against my old team (Dragons). That was kind of tough. We had all grown up with one another and were teammates. We (Charleroi) end up winning that game. It was kind of strange.”

It didn’t take long for Harding to make an impact for the Cougars. In his freshman season of 1988, he scored the winning touchdown late in a season-opening, 6-0, victory over cross-river rival Monessen.

He never slowed down. Harding rushed for 1,074 yards that season – becoming the first known freshman in WPIAL history to rush for more than 1,000 yards. He followed that with 1,273 rushing yards as a sophomore, lifting Charleroi into the WPIAL playoffs.

In his junior season, Harding rushed for 917 yards, missing two games with a turf toe injury. He was, however, in position to become the WPIAL’s all-time rushing leader heading into his senior season in 1991.

Harding led the Cougars to a second-place finish in the Century Conference behind Steel Valley and a first-round post-season victory. He rushed for 2,146 yards that season. He had two 300-yard plus rushing games, including a 312-yard rushing performance against South Allegheny when he scored TDs on runs of 45, 55, 80 and 56 yards.

“My cousin (Ken Griffey, Jr.) was in the stands that night and I was trying hard to get the 500 and some yards I needed to break the record,” Harding laughed. His mere presence at the game had everyone hyped and motivated.”

Harding, who was 6-1 and 180 pounds as a senior, broke the WPIAL record, set by Mapletown’s Derek Bochna – on a 35-yard TD run – which set off fireworks and about a half-hour delay in the game because of media and a planned celebration.

Harding finished his high school career with 5,410 rushing yards. He didn’t see it coming.

“As a freshman, I came in thinking I’d be a starter on the junior varsity squad,” he explained. “I was maybe 160 pounds soaking wet with a whole football uniform on. I was skinny. Fortunately, I was fast enough to get around the corner and make people miss. I initially thought I wasn’t going to be remotely close to have a starting role on varsity. I didn’t expect to start.

“I wasn’t comfortable but more confident. I was still scared to death of taking big hits. I feared, especially my freshman year, of getting hit hard. That’s why my feet went so fast, I think. It wasn’t about touchdowns or anything other than doing what I was asked to do by the coaches.”

A Good Teammate

By all accounts, Harding, albeit a quiet one, was a leader and he endeared himself to those around him. Nick Milcovich was his backfield mate for two seasons. He later went on to coach high school football when he truly appreciated what Harding was as a player and person.

“It was pleasure playing with him,” Milcovich said. “Darrell was a great kid who worked really hard at practice. He never set himself above anyone else. He was very humble. He respected his teammates and gave credit to all the guys who blocked for him. You could tell he had special talent as a freshman.

“When I looked back after becoming a coach, I really understood how good Darrell was. You could see when he played that he was special. As a coach, I realized he was a generational talent, who had quickness, speed and a great attitude. Those kinds of players don’t come around very often.”

Ron Wiggins, known as Ron Bullard while at Charleroi, said the special qualities of Harding shone brightly among teammates and friends.

“As a teammate, Darrell wasn’t very vocal,” Wiggins said. “He led by example. He set the tone with all those touchdowns runs. We were very close friends off the field. Because of that friendship, we had a special bond. It was like playing with my brother.

“There were numerous times when I thought I had seen it all from him. He proved me wrong by doing something else to top it by doing something really special.”

Figuring Out Harding

The 1991 season boiled down to two games for Charleroi. A regular season finale against Steel Valley to decide the Century Conference championship and a WPIAL quarterfinals matchup. The Ironmen hosted both games.

The main reasons for victory were Steel Valley standout running back Mike Johnson, Batch and a defensive game plan aimed at slowing Harding down. That put the Cougars in a position to have to throw and do things they weren’t particularly good at executing.

Undefeated and ranked No. 1, the Ironmen captured the regular season game and conference title, winning 21-7, in front of a packed house at Campbell Field in Munhall.

They held Harding to 88 rushing yards while Johnson gained 132. Steel Valley rushed for 308 yards pushing the Cougars into a three-way tie with Beth-Center and Frazier and handing them their second loss of the season.

Despite his second-lowest rushing output of the season, Harding surpassed the Western Pennsylvania record of Sharon’s Mike Archie (5,136 career yards rushing).

Down 14, Charleroi blocked a punt and was on Steel Valley’s three-yard line. On the first play after the blocked punt, Harding tried right tackle, he was hit and fumbled into the end zone and into the arms of an Ironmen defender.

The Cougars won their first-round playoff game to earn a return match with Steel Valley. For the second time in three weeks, Steel Valley found a way to bottle up Harding. The Ironmen advanced to the semifinals with a decisive 34-12 victory, holding Harding to a season-low 52 yards rushing. In 12 games, Harding rushed for more than 100 yards. Monessen was the only other team to hold him below 100 yards.

“We knew Darrell was as advertised,” Batch said. “We had to try and figure out how to corral him in the box and not let him get loose. We felt if we could get up on them, we didn’t think they had the type of passing attack to get back in the game. On offense, we kept the ball away from them so they couldn’t get the ball to him.”

“The first game our stands were standing-room-only with an overflow on the outside of the fence. It wasn’t because of us. They were there to see Darrell. We were at 125 percent capacity. Darrell brought in not just our community, but all of them. People were there because of him. They wanted their eyes on him.”

The mastermind of that Steel Valley defense was Ed Wehrer, Steel Valley’s defensive coordinator and currently the school district’s superintendent.

In 1991, after the postseason game, he said: “All we did was play very basic football.”

It was much more than that.

Said Batch: “(Wehrer) was good at creating different schemes but also had the personnel to do those things.”

Today, Wehrer agrees.

“We had never faced a 5,000-yard rusher,” Wehrer explained. “He was a great player and opponent. It was a monumental chore. We just didn’t want to give him space where he could operate. We did a good job in the 21-7 game.

“In the playoff game, we had to make a lot of solo stops and open-field tackles. If some of those weren’t made, the game could have been different. Fortunately, we had people to step up. He was certainly a special back.”

Harding remembers those games.

“The last game was tough,” he said. “They knocked us out. They forced us to pass. Styles make the fight, and they had a better game plan. They were just prepared. It shook us. We made adjustments but we just couldn’t get a piece of daylight. It was not the way you want to end career. But I cherish every moment of that.”

While he will always wonder about playing in the NFL if his position had not been changed, he remembers what his high school coach, Bob Hodgson, told him: “If, and when, you put the work in, you get your chance.”

“That’s the kind of coach and man he is. It’s right. You must put your time in and work hard. Then you get rewarded,” said Harding.

“As for the position switch at Cincinnati, I told my coach that I don’t backpedal. I run forward. That was a huge turning point for me. I did well at cornerback. But I missed running back. I’m thankful for the opportunity there. If I didn’t go there, I would never have met my wife. I have the beautiful family I have.”

Harding worked in pharmaceutical sales for 10 years but switched to a job as principal territorial manager for Medtronic Diabetes, a medical device sales company. His family moved to Florida. His son, Darrell Jr., is a top receiver for the Duke Blue Devils.

The final play of his collegiate career says it all. Harding talked Miter into letting him run the ball at the end of a game against Northern Illinois. Harding took a pitch and raced 15 yards for a touchdown.

“That was probably the highlight of my career,” Harding said. “I’m glad I was given the chance to fulfill that piece of my career.”