Northwood football star Joseph Harper wants to ‘leave everything on the field’ senior year

Joseph Harper is excited about his final season with Northwood. (Photos: Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone).

Northwood High School senior Joseph Harper has accomplished plenty in three years. In two of those seasons, he helped the Timberwolves bring home the first CIF titles for the football program.

But Harper isn’t satisfied and wants to go out with a bang his senior year.

“I’m trying to leave everything on the field for my senior year, I don’t want to have any regrets that I didn’t work hard or didn’t do this or didn’t do that,” said Harper, who was an All-CIF and all-league lineman the past two years.

Harper is willing to put in the work it takes to be successful. He and his younger brother Jacob, a sophomore lineman on the team, often leave their home at 5 a.m. for workouts and conditioning.

The 6-2, 220-pound Harper was a member of two CIF championship squads with his brother Adam in 2021 and 2022 and would like nothing better than to make a run at another ring this year.

“I want to go back bad and I think this team can, it has what it takes to definitely make a run,” he said. “But that team (in 2022) was different, it had insane chemistry, that was a good team.”

Harper, who played defensive end and receiver last year with a soft cast to protect his fractured left wrist, is at full strength and ready to lead the Timberwolves into Friday’s season opener against Irvine at Portola.

‘Fully cleared’

“I’m finally fully cleared, it’s been a struggle, I’ve had two surgeries, but I played in a scrimmage and practice and everything feels really good right now,” Harper said in an interview on campus. “I don’t see it holding me back at all this year.

“I had to get a surgery, and after the first surgery it didn’t heal so I had to do this other surgery where they took a piece from my hip and doctors weren’t even sure if that would work, but that one ended up being successful and my wrist has ended up healing. The doctors cleared me and contact feels fine right now. I’m looking forward to getting back out there with both hands.”

Harper said doctors have told him he won’t have to play with the soft cast this season.

Northwood Coach JC Clarke is relieved that Harper has been given full clearance.

“He does so many things for our team on both sides of the ball,” Clarke said. “Last year he set the school single season sack record with 17 1/2 and career record with 35 1/2 sacks and he has a year to go.”

Harper is excited about the season.

“I think we have a good team here, we’ve got a couple guys who have really stepped up in the off-season,” he said. “I think our skill is the best skill we’ve had since I’ve been here and we’ve got some depth. If we can stay healthy we can really go places.”

Improved team

The key will be the offensive and defensive lines, said Harper, who believes there will be significant improvement.

“Last year, we graduated nine out of 11 defenders, so last year was basically a full new defense so throughout the whole season there was a lot of learning and growing and I feel we have a lot of guys coming back with experience and I think our defense is going to be a lot better,” he said.

Harper said the Timberwolves have something to prove.

“Last year it was disappointing, we went 4-6, everyone thought we were nothing without Adam (Harper, his older brother), especially after we were so Adam heavy the last couple of years, but I think we seriously have a good enough team where we’re not going to let people down and we’re going to prove people wrong, we’re in a tougher league, but I don’t think that matters,” Harper said. “We lost a lot of close games last year and I think we’ve got the experience to flip the close games this year.”

Harper is hoping that includes Friday’s game with Irvine at Portola. Harper said the Timberwolves are out to avenge last year’s 42-13 loss to the Vaqueros.

“My freshman year we got blown out, my sophomore year we won and our junior year we got blown out, so it’s time to even it out,” he said.

Sack was special

Harper is expected to show the same fire he displayed last year, when he recorded his 17th sack of the season.

“It’s the best one (feeling) ever, especially when I got my 17th one (sack); it was everything I’ve been working for since my freshman year,” he said.

Harper was inspired hearing from coaches about a former player Brian Fairbanks, who held the previous record.

“Our coaches were telling us we’ve had a couple guys lead the county in sacks,” he said. “He was a big-time stud and ever since I learned about him, my goal before I graduate was to beat his sack record and be as dominant as he was, and I beat his sack record, so that was pretty satisfying.”

Joseph Harper is the second of three Harper players who have made their mark at Northwood. Adam was a record-setting running back and free safety and his younger brother Jacob is a sophomore offensive lineman.

Adam Harper is currently on the first year of a two-year mission in Australia. Joseph Harper credits his older brother for much of his success.

“He (Adam) was always out on weekends working, I always followed him in his steps,” Joseph Harper said. “Junior year, he was a real leader, he really put the team on his back for that. From his transition from junior to senior year, he knew it was his last year so he really did everything he could to make him better but everybody else around him better. I really admired for that. He wasn’t a very loud guy, but he always showed by example with his work ethic and how he played. He never showed weakness. He never showed he was tired, I knew he was tired.

“He’s always been a great example and I loved playing with him and I love playing with my younger brother Jacob who is really putting in a lot of work to get bigger and help the team in any way he can. He has really put a lot of work in the weight room. Last year, he was thrown into the fire, I think he did pretty well for a freshman. He’s really matured and put in a lot of work to be a leader on this team.”

Joseph Harper said he can’t wait to open the season opener playing the sport he loves.

“I love football, it’s the best sport in the world,” he said. “You’re grinding with your guys every day, it’s like life or death out there on the field. Seeing other guys succeed in football, makes you so happy.”

Supportive parents

Besides his older brother Adam, his parents have also been big supporters.

“Definitely my dad, he taught me early on if I wanted to be the best, I had to work for it,” Harper said. There would be so many days my friends would be playing video games and he would have me out Saturdays running routes, hitting baseballs. I did not take it very well, but he pushed me and I owe a lot of stuff to him. He made me realize if you want something in life, you have to work as hard as you can to get it. He always watches film with me and sees how I can get better and how I can get other guys can get better.

“My mother has showed me the compassion of things. Like if I hit a guy, always help him up, that’s my mother’s side. I feel like that makes the game fun too, the sportsmanship. She’s always volunteering and making brownies for the team. She’s an angel really.”

After the football season, Harper will play for Northwood’s basketball team, then wrap up his career on the baseball field.

“Last year was a bummer, I missed it (baseball) because of my wrist, we won league, but I’m itching to get out, we should have a pretty good team this year too,” he said.

Harper already knows what he will do after he graduates.

“I’m also going to go on a church mission, I have an offer from the University of Pennsylvania and if I can play healthy and have a good senior year, I think I can sign and go play there after my mission, which is something I really want to do,” he said. “It’s a very good school. If things go my way, I’ll have a couple things set up for me. But first thing I want to do is go on a mission.

“I want to play Division 1 football. I think if I can play healthy, I can go and play at the next level. But I also want to win a league MVP or just get us a league championship.”

There is still work to be done on the football field.

“I think I’ll be fine, it feels really good right now so I’m confident on how it’s going to last,” he said.

For full view, click on the photo:

—Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com