Utah State senior wide receiver Hunter Sharp nearly gave up the game of football when he was in high school.
Sharp preferred spending his time in a different way.
“I used to skateboard,” Sharp said. “In high school, I almost gave up football. Actually, I gave up my first two years of high school for skateboarding. I was that committed to it.”
Sharp didn’t go through with the decision to totally abandon football and now the Aggies are reaping the rewards of having the 6-foot-0, 200-pound native of Palmdale, California, who is a dynamic playmaker that can play any wide receiver position.
“Hunter has got NFL talent,” Utah State passing game coordinator/wide receivers coach Jovon Bouknight said. “He’s got the top-end speed, the body control, ball skills and he can stick a foot in the ground. He’s got all the intangibles that you need for the next level. He plays very tough and he’s going to make some big plays for us.”
He certainly has. Sharp has recorded a team-leading nine of the Aggies’ 32 receiving explosives, including six that have gone for touchdowns.
On the season, Sharp has caught 53 passes for 646 yards and seven touchdowns. He currently leads the team in all-purpose yards with an average of 98.6 ypg.
“It’s been great so far,” Sharp said when asked what his career has been like at Utah State. “I got up here and happened to get into an important role early, which I’m very humble about. The first year I was just trying to take it all in, but this year I feel like I’m more a part of the culture and want the best for our team.”
Sharp has forged a close relationship on and off the field with sophomore quarterback Kent Myers.
“I have a wonderful connection with Kent,” Sharp said. “When (offensive coordinator Josh) Heupel came in, he made sure that every single quarterback and every single wide receiver had a relationship on the field. Everybody got to throw to everybody in case an injury happened. Off the field, we are pretty close. We go to the same barber and get the same haircut. We always tease each other. He’s kind of like my brother.”
During his junior season with the Aggies in 2014, Sharp earned honorable mention all-Mountain West honors, along with being named second-team all-MW by Phil Steele and College Sports Madness. He finished the season ranking first on the team in receptions (66), receiving yards (939) and receiving touchdowns (seven).
Sharp is tied for ninth all-time in school history for a single season with those 66 catches. He also set the single-game record for yards per reception (34.6) as he caught five passes for 173 yards in Utah State’s stunning 35-20 victory at previously unbeaten BYU, which was ranked 18th at the time, on Oct. 3, 2014.
“I didn’t know much about the rivalry going into the game,” Sharp said, “but by halftime I felt like I had lived here my whole life and I was angry about it just like the rest of the guys.”
Sharp had four touchdown receptions of at least 70 yards last season (81, 72, 75 and 70), which led the nation. On top of that, he is one of just two Football Bowl Subdivision players in the last five years to accomplish that feat, joining USC’s Marqise Lee in 2012.
“He’s explosive,” Bouknight said. “He’s scary out there because he’s explosive off the ball and then he has great acceleration. When you get a guy like Hunter out there on the perimeter against a defensive back, that’s scary. His route running ability, his feel for the zones and the way he goes out there and catches the ball makes him a great player. He’s very aggressive.”
Sharp’s big-play ability makes him a valuable asset on special teams as well. After all, the Aggies have also had him return punts and kickoffs. Just last Saturday against Nevada, Sharp returned a kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown.
Prior to joining Utah State, Sharp earned California Community College Athletic Association All-Pacific Division first-team honors in the Southern California Football Association as a sophomore at Antelope Valley College in Lancaster, California, as he had 49 receptions for 657 yards and six touchdowns. He also returned 15 punts for 199 yards and two touchdowns, and five kickoffs for 48 yards.
“He was very dynamic,” Bouknight said when asked what he liked about Sharp coming out of the junior college ranks. “He returned kicks, you saw him on punt returns, you saw him running the Wildcat at quarterback. He’s very dynamic, but the playmaking ability he’s doing right now is what I saw on film. And catching the ball with your hands out in space, I can work with that.”
Following his successful sophomore season at Antelope Valley College, Sharp had offers from Utah State, San Diego State, Wyoming, Indiana and South Florida. So what made the Aggies stand out against the other schools?
“Definitely the culture,” Sharp said. “(Head) coach (Matt) Wells stressed on my visit that this was a group of hard-working guys. It’s a small place, but an easy place to work hard and be together as a family. He preached about that and it was something I wanted to be a part of. The record definitely reflected on how hard the team worked.”
Family values are very important to Sharp. After all, he and his girlfriend, Kristen Hernandez, are the proud parents of a 6-month-old baby girl named Maya Eryn Sharp.
“I’ve made mistakes, but bringing her into the world has opened my eyes up and helped me realize that I’m not doing what I’m doing just for myself anymore,” Sharp said. “I’m doing it for her and for my family, honestly. She’s my biggest motivation and if I put her on my mind, I can accomplish anything.”
During his senior season at Highland High School in Palmdale, Sharp earned California Interscholastic Federation all-Golden League first-team honors as a wide receiver after catching 48 passes for 868 yards and 10 touchdowns, to go along with 104 yards rushing and two more scores on 16 carries. Defensively, Sharp recorded 37 tackles and had an interception.
As a junior for the Bulldogs, Sharp had 25 receptions for 379 yards and three touchdowns, to go along with 126 yards rushing and one touchdown on 32 carries.
The son of Rodney and Valerie Sharp is majoring in sociology and on track to graduate in December. Sharp would love nothing more than to join his cousin, Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Derrick Johnson, at the next level.
“Hopefully, I’ll get invited to the Senior Bowl and NFL combine, and pursue an NFL career,” Sharp said. “If not, then I’ll do something with my degree and stay positive.”