Tag: TJ Harden

Washington State running back to visit UCLA, USC, and Utah

The Bruins pick up a visit from a talented tailback.

The UCLA Bruins lost running back T.J. Harden to the transfer portal this week but already have their sights set on their next potential tailback.

Washington State freshman Wayshawn Parker entered the transfer portal this week after a breakout season with the Cougars. Parker rushed for 735 yards and four touchdowns in 2024, averaging an impressive 5.4 yards per carry.

According to Pete Nakos of On3 (subscription required), the former Washington State tailback is set to visit UCLA, USC, and Utah.

In 2024, the Bruins averaged a Big Ten-worst 86.6 yards per game behind a questionable offensive line. With lots of room for improvement and a wide-open depth chart, UCLA offers a lot of playing potential for a running back like Parker.

Under new offensive coordinator Tino Sunseri, who helped the Indiana Hoosiers rush for over 2,000 yards and a whopping 37 rushing touchdowns this season, the Bruins should see a massive improvement in the running game, with Parker potentially playing a big role if he transfers to Westwood.

Fellow Big Ten school transfer RB to visit MSU this weekend

Michigan State football is working to bring in a transfer running back from one of its conference peers

Michigan State football is working to bring in a transfer running back from one of its conference peers.

Justin Thind and Corey Robinson of 247Sports are reporting that Michigan State will host UCLA transfer running back TJ Harden this weekend. He is expected to begin his visit on Friday.

Harden is considered the No. 6 running back in the portal at this time. He recorded 873 all-purpose yards and 4.2 yards per carry on 124 carries this past season. He also had 40 catches proving to be a dynamic player for the Bruins.

Stay with Spartans Wire for all of your transfer portal news related to Michigan State football.

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on X @RobertBondy5.

UCLA running back TJ Harden enters transfer portal

A big loss for UCLA.

Los Angeles native TJ Harden entered the transfer portal on Monday after leading the Bruins with 505 rushing yards this season.

Harden joined UCLA back in 2022 as a three-star recruit and appeared in 31 games as a Bruin over the past three seasons accumulating 1,658 rushing yards and over 500 more yards through the air. Harden frequented the end zone with the Bruins’, scoring 14 touchdowns including nine in 2023 alone.

His numbers this year took a bit of a step back from a stellar 2023 campaign under Chip Kelly, Harden averaged only 4.1 yards per rush this season, down from 5.3 in 2023 where he finished with 827 rushing yards. At 6’2” 240 lbs, Harden was a physical runner which is why Harden was first or second the past three seasons in rushing yards for UCLA running backs.

Harden now might be looking at playing football somewhere other than Southern California for the first time, after playing his high school ball at Inglewood High School. Fellow Bruins’ running back Keegan Jones is graduating, making Harden’s transfer an even stronger blow to the Bruins’ running back depth. 

UCLA football sends Iowa packing in Big Ten takedown

The Bruins beat the Hawkeyes at their own game at the Rose Bowl on Friday night.

The UCLA Bruins won their first game at the Rose Bowl this season, knocking off the Iowa Hawkeyes 20-17. After an upset win over Nebraska, the Bruins proved themselves against a gritty Big Ten team and sent the Hawkeyes home empty-handed.

Though the Bruins picked up their third-straight win, the game did not look pretty from the jump. Quarterback Ethan Garbers threw an interception on the game’s first possession, setting the Hawkeyes up with great field position inside UCLA territory. Three plays later, a two-yard touchdown from tailback Kaleb Johnson put Iowa up 7-0, taking the air out of the Rose Bowl.

But the Bruins rallied, showing a level of poise and resiliency not yet seen by the team this season. After falling behind 10-0 in the first quarter, UCLA scored 17 unanswered points and capped off the first half with a 29-yard touchdown strike from Garbers to wideout Logan Loya to take a 17-10 lead.

In the second half, UCLA’s defense took over. Holding the Hawkeyes’ running game to only 80 yards on 2.6 yards per carry, UCLA won Friday night’s Big Ten showdown in the trenches.

Forcing an injured Hawkeye passing game to throw on them,  UCLA’s opportunistic defense tallied three turnovers and proved they could weather an average performance from Garbers by capitalizing on Iowa’s mistakes.

In the end, the Bruins were the more complete team on Friday, demonstrating why they are an up-and-coming Big Ten team to be reckoned with.

Now 4-5 on the season, entering their next game versus Washington, UCLA has a chance to reclaim a .500 record and stay in the hunt for a bowl game berth.

Ethan Garbers, TJ Harden stock down after UCLA’s Week 1 clash

Both the QB and RB are trending down…

The UCLA Bruins’ narrow win over Hawaii left plenty of questions to be answered. One of the biggest was regarding the play of quarterback Ethan Garbers.

However, DeShaun Foster admitted it could’ve been jitters, and UCLA has a Week 2 bye before the Big Ten opener against Indiana at home.

Still, both Garbers and running back TJ Harden appeared in the stock-down category of College Sports Wire’s piece. Here’s what Rodney Knuppel said about Garbers:

Ethan Garbers looked pretty poor in the first half. The UCLA quarterback got things together, however, and finished with a decent game. He completed 19 of 38 passes for 272 yards and a touchdown. His lone interception was a poor throw, and he was off balance. He did lead the Bruins in rushing yards with 47. Garbers will need to be better for the Bruins to have a chance in the Big Ten.

Fans questioned Garbers’ performance after the game, but hopefully he will improve going forward.

As for Harden, here’s what Knuppel wrote:

Yikes. This may be more about the offensive line and play calling for the Bruins than it is about TJ Harden, but his nine carries for nine yards is very concerning.

Harden was projected to have a big season for the Bruins. He got nothing. He looked a little off, and a tad slow. His stock plummeted after week one.

There are reasons to be concerned, but it’s the first game with a new head coach and offensive coordinator. Let’s not panic just yet.

Ethan Garbers, TJ Harden land on magazine covers

Harden and Garbers get the covers.

The UCLA Bruins football program has a lot of returning faces. Ethan Garbers is the starting quarterback and TJ Harden will be the starting running back, and he was even in the trailer for the new EA Sports 2025 college football video game. 

The Lindy’s Sports and Athlon Sports magazines featured a pair of UCLA players in Garbers and Harden.

A massive story coming into this season is all of the shuffling around the conferences. The Pac-12 folding and the Big Ten Conference and Big 12 Conference expanding are some notable things.

Garbers threw for 984 yards with nine touchdowns and is entering his senior season in Westwood.

Harden ran for 722 yards with six touchdowns. With the departure of Carson Steele to the NFL, Harden should be the workhorse at the position, although it will be interesting to see how the new-look scheme will work out. Nonetheless, UCLA getting national coverage is quite interesting.

UCLA’s TJ Harden spotted in EA Sports 2025 video game trailer

TJ Harden makes the trailer.

Finally, after a long layoff, the EA Sports College Football video game is coming out. The 2025 version will be released in July and the trailer was officially dropped on Friday.

The full trailer is worth watching and should make fans excited about what is to come after so many years without the game being released.

In the trailer, UCLA Bruins running back TJ Harden was spotted during the trailer, as Mike Regalado pointed out on Twitter. It features a number of Big Ten teams and is full of neat traditions.

Harden decided to stick around with the Bruins after the DeShaun Foster hire and he is expected to be a workhorse in the backfield for the new-look Bruins offense with Eric Bieniemy running the show.

The entire trailer can be seen here and Harden’s short appearance comes around the 1:40 mark. Get ready.

TJ Harden staying at UCLA after DeShaun Foster hire

TJ Harden is staying at UCLA.

The biggest question when the UCLA Bruins hired DeShaun Foster would be whether or not the players would stay or enter the transfer portal.

However, during Foster’s introductory press conference, Martin Jarmond mentioned that zero players had entered the portal as of Tuesday.

Right after the press conference ended, running back TJ Harden made his stance clear: He is staying put (h/t James H. Williams of The OC Register).

“I’m staying…I want to be a Bruin and this is home for me.”

Harden had a massive year being coached by Foster and he ran for 827 yards and eight touchdowns on 156 carries with Zach Charbonnet going to the NFL.

Harden appears to be fully on board, and why wouldn’t he be? Foster has turned four running backs to the NFL and is now the head coach for the football program.

The sophomore running back from Los Angeles is staying put, which is good news for the Bruins and their fans.