LITTLE ROCK — All it took was a fullback and a phone call.
Arkansas Twisters Coach Chris Siegfried waited with his team to board a plane at Spokane (Wash.) International Airport on March 19, shortly after a 35-28, Arena Football 2 preseason loss to the Spokane Shock. He was unhappy with his team's offense and called a wide receiver named Rod Harper in Bradenton, Fla.
Arkansas fullback Chad Cook played at Murray State with Harper and recommended him to Siegfried.
Four days later, Harper flew to Little Rock. He signed with Arkansas on March 25, too late to adequately prepare for the Twisters' season opener, a 39-38 victory over the Bossier-Shreveport BattleWings.
Harper started in Arkansas' 45-24 victory over the Amarillo Dusters in Amarillo, Texas, on April 4. Siegfried and Arkansas quarterback Kyle Rowley said before the game Harper had looked sharp in practice. Harper's performance against Amarillo drew similar comments. He caught 14 passes for 156 yards and 3 touchdowns.
Siegfried said he was not surprised.
"Guys can look great in practice and not look the same when the lights come on," Siegfried said. "But he was in a minicamp with the Green Bay Packers. He did a great job at Murray State. There were just too many positive factors pointing toward himbeing an impact player to some degree. Plus, his highlight film was tremendous."
Harper should make his second start today when Arkansas hosts the Rio Grande Dorados at North Little Rock's Alltel Arena. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. Central.
"He can definitely play," Rowley said. "It was one game. You don't want to put too much into it, but he's a good player. His work ethic is good. Even when you have talent, it's like, are they willing to work to get better? He's got that, so we have confidence in him."
"I felt like I did pretty good against Amarillo," Harper said. "I know that they're not the greatest team. They have some good athletes, but as a collective whole, they're not the greatest team, so I didn't get too high. I still havea lot of room to improve in this arena game. I'm just looking to get better, to start to feel more comfortable."
Harper caught a total of 128 passes for 1,651 yards and 20 touchdowns in three seasons at Murray State. He caught 57 for 777 yards and 10 touchdowns as a senior in 2007 and signed as a free agent with the Green Bay Packers in 2008. Released last June, he returned to his mother's home in Bradenton, where he briefly worked at a Toys R Us and trained for a return to football.
"A lot of the guys I recruit, I learned about from other players," Siegfried said. "They'll say, 'Hey, I got a buddy who plays.'
"Most of the time, they don't work out, but I liked all that I sawabout Rod.
"I asked him if he was in shape, and he said, 'Hey, I run every day, sometimes twice a day.' He's a workout fanatic. He convinced me he had the conditioning. From Day 1, he got a lot of reps, and we knew he was going to be a good one."
Harper said he is at least temporarily content with the Twisters.
"The goal is always the NFL in football, and I think I'm capable of that, as far as athleticism goes," Harper said. "That's always the goal, but right now, I'm just really enjoying playing. I feel like if it's God's will for me to be in the NFL, or the Canadian Football League, I'll be there. But now, I'm just taking it day by day."Arkansas Twisters vs. Rio Grande Dorados WHEN 7:05 p.m. Central today WHERE Alltel Arena, North Little Rock RECORDS Arkansas 2-0; Rio Grande 1-0 SERIES Tied 1-1 LAST MEETING Rio Grande won 57-55 on April 22, 2006 TICKETS $11-$28 with discounted rates available for groups of 10 or more. Available at Alltel Arena box office, by calling (501) 975-9000 or at www.ticektmaster.com RADIO KASR-FM, 92.7, in Conway; KHGGFM, 103.1, in Fort Smith; KHGG-AM, 1580, in Van Buren; and KHDM-AM, 1710, in Walnut Ridge INTERNET www.csnsports.com; www.kasr. com; www.waxmanradio.com COACHES Chris Siegfried (13-5 in second season at Arkansas, 69-31 in seventh season overall); Marty Hammond (29-20 in fourth season at Rio Grande and overall)
Sports, Pages 30 on 04/11/2009