Dorian Hardy, one of the most coveted New Jersey high school football recruit in the class of 2018, has begun the process of transferring from St. Joseph-Montvale to Paramus Catholic, according to two persons with knowledge of the possible move.
Those persons have requested anonymity because they haven’t been authorized to speak on the subject.
The transfer ultimately could hinge on Hardy’s ability to gain admission to Paramus Catholic.
The 6-foot-5, 245-pound defensive end is ranked as a consensus four-star prospect by national recruiting services. RIvals.com lists him No. 116 overall nationally and No. 4 among defensive ends.
Hardy holds at least 22 football scholarship offers from major Division I programs, with unofficial visits taken to Rutgers, Michigan State, Michigan, Penn State and Florida.
Grading RU’s 2017 class by position
Hardy received his first scholarship offer in December 2015 from Michigan, which is closely associated with Paramus Catholic.
Michigan linebackers coach Chris Partridge is a former Paramus Catholic coach, Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh spoke at the high school’s graduation ceremony in 2016, and several of Paramus Catholic’s top players over the last few years — including NFL-bound Jabrill Peppers, Rashan Gary and 2017 commit Drew Singleton have signed with the Wolverines.
St. Joseph-Montvale finished as the No. 1-ranked team in the final 2016 NJ.com statewide rankings, one spot ahead of Paramus Catholic. Both schools won NJSIAA sectional titles.
Defensive end Dorian Hardy is one of the most sought-after New Jersey recruits in the class of 2018. Andrew Mills | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
Hardy’s recruitment truly picked up last spring, despite spending the majority of his sophomore season playing for the junior varsity. He came on strong at the end of the 2015 season and then
“I want to go to a place where I feel comfortable, that feels most like home,” Hardy previously told NJ Advance Media. “Because without that, I mean, yeah, it’s football. But you still have to live your life outside of football in college.”
The NJSIAA has an amended rule taking effect July 1 that requires all transfers to sit out 30 days or half the games allowed for each sport. Previously, there was a 30-day sitting penalty for transfers deemed to be for athletic advantage, though the bona fide change of-address exception no longer applies.
The updated transfer rule does not have an appeals process but did keep in place some exceptions from the old oft-criticized governing rule.
One such example pertains to Harassment, Intimidation and Bullying (HIB) claims filed under New Jersey’s Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights Act: Those with a verified claim by the previous school that a student’s education would be best served by a transfer will be immediately eligible.
It is unclear if this would apply in Hardy’s case as it progresses, though his history at St. Joseph-Montvale includes a physical altercation between his mother and then-assistant freshman football coach Christopher Trout that led to Trout’s resignation in October 2015.
Transfers also are immediately eligible as a result of placement related to the military and the Division of Child Protection and Permanency, under the NJSIAA rule.
Ryan Dunleavy may be reached at rdunleavy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @rydunleavy. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.
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