Temple University Athletics
Finding Footing in Philly: Carl Hardin’s Growing Role at Temple
11.28.25 | Football
Sophomore kicker Carl Hardin didn't always know where football would take him. Growing up, he moved up and down the East Coast – born in North Carolina, then relocating to New Jersey, South Carolina, Washington, D.C., and finally back to Raleigh – following his dad's return to school at Rutgers and his parents' careers. The constant uprooting taught him how to adapt, how to find his footing quickly, and how to stay grounded even when life around him kept shifting.
College, though, was different. It felt like a choice that would shape everything. And when Hardin attended specialist camp in the summer of 2023, he earned his lone Division I offer from Temple. That was all he needed.
"It ended up working out great," Hardin says. "It was my only offer out of high school. Easy choice."
Raleigh gave him a taste of city life, but Philadelphia was on a different scale. "Raleigh's a city, but it's not a city like Philly," he says with a laugh. "It's way more walkable. Everything's closer together. I'd lived in big places like D.C. before, but never up here. I always knew I liked big cities, so the transition was pretty easy."
The road to football wasn't straightforward either. Hardin grew up a soccer player and expected that to be his sport throughout high school. But when freshman tryouts arrived, he skipped them – he still doesn't know why – and as a result, he spent that year off the field entirely. That winter, his parents gave him a football for Christmas. He started kicking in the yard, discovered he liked it, and suddenly his path changed once again.
"Soccer transitions really well into kicking," he says. "I just kept practicing, and it stuck." By his sophomore year of high school, football had become his focus.
Ask him if kickers really are the quirky individualists that they seem to be and Hardin laughs. "I definitely think that's true," he says. "It's such a unique position. We only really have two kinds of kicks to practice. The uniqueness of the position kind of comes with the uniqueness of the person."
Regardless, a close-knit bond formed among Temple's specialists. "We do pretty much everything together," Hardin says. "In the locker room, we're all right next to each other. At practice we're together, on game day we're together. It definitely brings us closer."
Off the field, Hardin has found stability in a different kind of team. After living on a mostly-football dorm hallway during his freshman year, Hardin now shares an apartment with four teammates: back-up quarterback Pat Keller, offensive linemen Eric King and Luke Watson, and linebacker Jordan Montgomery.
He knew all of them from day one. "Me and Pat lived together in the dorms, and Luke, Eric, and Jordan lived across the hall," Hardin says. "We all came in together and did the onboarding stuff at the same time. Since we were always in the same places, we just naturally started talking. It was easy."
His roommates are all somewhat local – Jordan from Philadelphia, Pat from Doylestown, Eric from Jersey City, and Luke from Delaware – something Hardin appreciated as the only one who arrived from far away.
His family has handled the distance well too. Although they'd love to be closer, the direct Raleigh-to-Philadelphia flight helps. "It's about an hour," Hardin says. "So that makes it easy for them."
Competition ran deep in his household. His younger sister, now a diver at James Madison University, matched his intensity. "We were definitely competitive," Hardin says. "I think that helped us get to where we are today."
In the classroom, Hardin is majoring in Construction and Technology Engineering, a program rooted in soils, materials, and the technical side of building and infrastructure.
"It's a lot of calculations behind the projects," he says. "I've always wanted to do something where I'd be working with my hands – maybe out on a site instead of inside an office." His dad's work as a city planner gave him a window into related fields. "He works on the same kinds of projects," Hardin says, "just from a different angle."
On the field, his goals are simple and ambitious at the same time. "The main goal is the NFL," he says. "If that doesn't work out, then some kind of engineering job. But really, just trying to get better at kicking and be the best I can be."
Head Coach K.C. Keeler sees that focus every day.
"That whole battery – snapper, holder, kicker – has been terrific," Keeler says. "Carl's such a steady guy. Really strong leg for a man of his stature. And his demeanor and approach… he's the kind of guy where, if you give him a plan, he'll follow the plan."
Keeler credits specialist coach Rick Brown for strengthening Hardin's routine and precision. "There's a real intention to what he does, and Carl's gotten better every week. We're not afraid to put him in a critical situation."
"Sometimes when I go out onto the field to kick, I get a little bit nervous," Hardin says. "So I tell myself that all I can do now is trust my technique and kick the ball. I know that gives me a great chance of success. Positive thoughts like that help calm my nerves."
Staying level is essential for him.
"I have to make sure I'm at a neutral mental state," he says. "I can't be thinking about the previous kick, and I can't get too high or too low. I just stare down the spot where the ball will be and follow through to the target. Those mental things help me be consistent and focused."
He continues, "I feel like I'm on the right track, but I can definitely still up my mental game."
For a kid who spent his childhood packing boxes and learning to adjust to whatever came next, settling somewhere never felt certain. Now, Hardin has roots – a city he likes, a major that fits him, and a program that trusts him. He's not just adapting anymore. He's building something.
