Chris Harper, WR - Cal

This is a very good WR class so a guy like Harper is definitely under the radar but he's definitely something to look into most likely on Day 3 of the NFL Draft. It really hurt him to not receive an invite to the combine but I wouldn't expect that to keep him down. When he committed to Cal in 2012 I wasn't paying much attention because that WR class also brought in higher-rated guys (who we should keep our eyes on for next year's draft) but Harper stood out right away, finishing his true frosh season as the team's 2nd leading receiver behind Keenan Allen (41 catches, 544 yards, 3 TDs - 1 rushing) with a godawful Zach Maynard throwing the ball. He proved that was no fluke in 2013 going for 70 catches, 852 yards and 5 TDs (the last 2 being team highs), then had a 52/643/6 season in 2014 once the ball started to get spread around (top 4 receivers caught between 46-54 balls, none for more than 701 yards). If I had to guess a combination of the ball being spread around (didn't feel he'd put up FAR better numbers in 2015), looking for a payday (for the right reasons, recently engaged), and feeling NFL ready left him to declare.

My initial NFL comparison for Harper is a rich man's Doug Baldwin. Harper is lanky, speedy, has pretty good hands and runs really good routes. He can also make the acrobatic catch as seen here (http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11561751)

More highlights (all 2014):

30-yard TD at Arizona http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11562068
40-yard TD vs Colorado http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11601716
27-yard catch at Washington St http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11644605
12-yard catch at Washington St http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11644888
40-yard catch at Washington St http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11645304 (dirty with the SlantNGo route)
11-yard catch vs Washington http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11683464
MY FAVORITE: 7-yard ONE HANDED TD vs UCLA http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11722565
25-yard catch at Oregon St http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11806825
10-yard TD at Oregon St http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11807735 (look at the feet on the delayed slant)
6-yard TD at USC http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11872706 (good cut/sell into the drag route)
41-yard catch vs BYU http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11955130 (again sells the in route before burning deep, outstanding adjustment to the ball)

I'm sure there's more on him out there as far as footage but I don't have the time to look it all up. I think if we're looking to find speedy WR's he should definitely be someone to look at in Day 3. Towards the end of the season we saw Paul Richardson start to become a factor for Seattle and he's very similar to Harper as far as measurables. I'd like to see Harper add some more weight to his frame while continuing to show his explosiveness but I have no doubts that he will be a contributor at the NFL level, plus he's one of those guys who's hungry to prove himself which is something you always want.

Looking forward to your guys' thoughts on him.

Originally posted by vrabbit:

WR

California

5'11'', 175lbs

This is a very good WR class so a guy like Harper is definitely under the radar but he's definitely something to look into most likely on Day 3 of the NFL Draft. It really hurt him to not receive an invite to the combine but I wouldn't expect that to keep him down. When he committed to Cal in 2012 I wasn't paying much attention because that WR class also brought in higher-rated guys (who we should keep our eyes on for next year's draft) but Harper stood out right away, finishing his true frosh season as the team's 2nd leading receiver behind Keenan Allen (41 catches, 544 yards, 3 TDs - 1 rushing) with a godawful Zach Maynard throwing the ball. He proved that was no fluke in 2013 going for 70 catches, 852 yards and 5 TDs (the last 2 being team highs), then had a 52/643/6 season in 2014 once the ball started to get spread around (top 4 receivers caught between 46-54 balls, none for more than 701 yards). If I had to guess a combination of the ball being spread around (didn't feel he'd put up FAR better numbers in 2015), looking for a payday (for the right reasons, recently engaged), and feeling NFL ready left him to declare.

My initial NFL comparison for Harper is a rich man's Doug Baldwin. Harper is lanky, speedy, has pretty good hands and runs really good routes. He can also make the acrobatic catch as seen here (http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11561751)

More highlights (all 2014):

30-yard TD at Arizona http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11562068
40-yard TD vs Colorado http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11601716
27-yard catch at Washington St http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11644605
12-yard catch at Washington St http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11644888
40-yard catch at Washington St http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11645304 (dirty with the SlantNGo route)
11-yard catch vs Washington http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11683464
MY FAVORITE: 7-yard ONE HANDED TD vs UCLA http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11722565
25-yard catch at Oregon St http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11806825
10-yard TD at Oregon St http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11807735 (look at the feet on the delayed slant)
6-yard TD at USC http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11872706 (good cut/sell into the drag route)
41-yard catch vs BYU http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:11955130 (again sells the in route before burning deep, outstanding adjustment to the ball)

I'm sure there's more on him out there as far as footage but I don't have the time to look it all up. I think if we're looking to find speedy WR's he should definitely be someone to look at in Day 3. Towards the end of the season we saw Paul Richardson start to become a factor for Seattle and he's very similar to Harper as far as measurables. I'd like to see Harper add some more weight to his frame while continuing to show his explosiveness but I have no doubts that he will be a contributor at the NFL level, plus he's one of those guys who's hungry to prove himself which is something you always want.

Looking forward to your guys' thoughts on him.

Might be a sleeper,I would`nt mind taking him in the 5 or 6 th rd.

What probably impressed me the most about Harper this past year was his willingness to block. A huge improvement from previous seasons. And despite his role decreasing due to the emergence of Kenny Lawler and Trevor Davis, he never once complained (at least that I know of). He's a team first player and like vrabbit said he's hungry to prove himself. He also has experience returning punts. Harper's the real deal!

Cal/local guy

49ers won't draft lol

big day for him today at Cal's pro day

Harper runs 40. My time is 4.48.

https://twitter.com/GoldenBlogs/status/577893495060373504

hmmm

Chris Harper Performance Highlights Pro Day

BERKELEY – Former Cal wide receiver Chris Harper registered the most impressive performance in front of scouts from 29 NFL teams at the annual Cal Football Pro Day held Tuesday at Kabam Field at California Memorial Stadium. Harper was timed by scouts in the 40-yard dash in as low as 4.49, which would have been in the top 20 in his position at the 2015 NFL Scouting Combine held last month in Indianapolis.

Several scouts also had him in the 6.9's in the 3-cone drill with only 10 combine participants under 6.9. He registered 35.0" in the vertical jump and 120.0" in the broad jump

"I think it went pretty well," Harper said. "I'm happy with the performance I put out. A couple of teams told me I did well today and that they would be contacting me within the next couple of weeks to go on visits."

Harper was performing for the first time in front of a large group of NFL scouts after not receiving an invitation to the combine held last month in Indianapolis. Harper said that he was surprised to not be invited to the combine after foregoing his final season of collegiate eligibility at Cal in 2015, adding that he has been told that he projects to be selected somewhere between the third and seventh rounds in the 2015 NFL Draft to be held April 30 – May 2.

"I thought he had a good all-around workout today," one NFL scout said. "He was a crisp, fast and good-looking player out there today."

Another scout mentioned he thought the reason Harper may not have been invited to the combine was simply "a numbers game" at his position and thought he definitely has the skill set needed.

Originally posted by ads_2006:
Cal/local guy

49ers won't draft lol

This.

See if Chip Kelly likes the kid

vrabbit is posting?

edit: Ooops, I was fooled