SEC Outdoor Track & Field Championships

Overlooked Harper excels at UA

University of Arkansas runner Daina Harper competes in the 400 meter dash Saturday, January 28, 2017, during the Razorback Invitational track meet at the Randal Tyson Track Complex in Fayetteville. Harper finished 4th with a time of 53.37.
University of Arkansas runner Daina Harper competes in the 400 meter dash Saturday, January 28, 2017, during the Razorback Invitational track meet at the Randal Tyson Track Complex in Fayetteville. Harper finished 4th with a time of 53.37.

FAYETTEVILLE -- Four years ago, Daina Harper wasn't sure if she'd run track in college.

Things weren't looking good late in her senior season at Houston Cypress High School. Stephen F. Austin University offered a scholarship in October 2012, but that changed in the winter.

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"The Stephen F. Austin offer was pulled," Harper said. "They said I was taking too long to make a decision."

No other colleges had offered her a scholarship by April.

"I had nothing," Harper said. "I mean, nothing."

Harper figured she might attend Lone Star Community College or the University of Houston.

"At that point, I was thinking maybe track wasn't going to work out at the collegiate level," she said. "I would just work on getting my degree and wouldn't be an athlete anymore."

Then Arkansas Razorbacks assistant coach Chris Johnson saw Harper run the 400 meters in one of her last high school meets. Harper ran 54.94 seconds, breaking 55 for the first time and impressing Johnson.

"I couldn't believe she was unsigned," said Johnson, who coaches sprinters and hurdlers. "It's one of those things where I think she was just meant to be at Arkansas."

Johnson called Harper two days after watching her run with an offer of a full scholarship. She visited the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville the next week and signed with the Razorbacks.

Harper has paid back Johnson's faith by developing into an SEC champion and seven-time All-American.

The senior won the 400 meters at the SEC Indoor Track and Field Championships, running 52.03, then took fourth at the NCAA meet in 51.93.

Harper will go for another 400 title at the SEC outdoor meet this weekend in Columbia, S.C.

"I knew Coach Johnson would help me progress athletically, and I believed I'd be able to run fast and get all the support I needed at Arkansas to get my degree," said Harper, who will graduate in December with a psychology degree. "But being an SEC individual champion? I never expected that.

"It's hard to believe sometimes that things can happen for you."

Harper has made a huge jump this year after finishing sixth in the 400 at the SEC indoor and outdoor meets as a junior. Her personal-best 51.38 this outdoor season leads the SEC and ranks third nationally.

"Daina is showing her tremendous growth and maturity over the last four years," Johnson said. "She's started to figure things out.

"She's really understanding the true meaning of a workout -- the importance of it and what it's designed to do -- and bought into it totally. That grit and drive and hard work year in and year out is paying off."

Johnson said Harper is committed to doing "all the little things" in terms of maintaining a proper diet, making sure to get enough sleep and meeting regularly with the training staff.

"She realizes the importance of the attention to detail," Johnson said. "Being a senior, she also knows she has to help lead the team.

"I think she's really stepped up mentally, too, along with all of her physical attributes."

Arkansas Coach Lance Harter said Harper's improvement hasn't been a surprise.

"She's the epitome of what our program's all about," Harter said. "I use the analogy of putting our athletes on an escalator, and you'll keep rising to another level if you stay on it.

"Daina has done that, and she's reaping the benefits as a senior. I think that chemistry between her and Chris has really shown the results."

Harper will run legs on the 400 and 1,600 relays this week, so she's hoping to score in three events to help Arkansas win its 10th consecutive SEC title across cross country, and indoor and outdoor track.

The last time the Razorbacks didn't win an SEC title was the indoor meet during Harper's freshman year in 2014.

"I've been telling the seniors, 'We want to go out on top,' " Harper said. "I don't even think a lot of people can imagine how amazing of an accomplishment it really is to win all of these SEC championships in a row.

"Not a lot of teams can do it at all, and we do it repeatedly at Arkansas."

So what did Johnson see in Harper as a high school senior that other college coaches missed?

"It's about having an eye for talent and projecting what a kid's capable of doing and us sticking with her and her sticking with us through the ups and downs," Johnson said. "If you look at her career at Arkansas, she was a late developer in college just like she was a late developer in high school."

Harper said she's confident she can win another SEC 400 title after wondering whether it could ever happen for her once.

"It's my last SEC meet wearing an Arkansas uniform," she said. "So I definitely want to go out with a first-place finish and help us win as a team."

Harper is attempting to become the third Razorback to sweep SEC indoor and outdoor 400 titles in the same year, along with Regina George (2013) and Taylor Ellis-Watson (2016).

"Daina's got one leg of it done," Johnson said. "To finish it off would be fantastic."

Daina Harper

at a glance

COLLEGE Arkansas

EVENTS 400 meters, 400 and 1,600 relays

CLASS Senior HIGH SCHOOL Houston Cypress Creek

AGE 21 (born May 26, 1995)

NOTEWORTHY Won 400 at this year’s SEC indoor meet and finished fourth at the NCAA indoors. … Ran personal-best 51.38 outdoors this season, which leads the SEC and ranks third nationally. … Seven-time All-American, including six relays. … Arkansas was only scholarship offer late in her senior year of high school. … Psychology major who will graduate in December. … Parents are Darton and Stacy Harper.

Sports on 05/10/2017

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