Starting Lineup: Justice Hardy will be all over the place for Spartans once again
To recognize the top players in Berks County football MikeDragoSports.com has selected the “Starting Lineup,” a preseason All-Berks team that includes the top linemen, backs, receivers, linebackers, and specialists.
Players are selected based on past performance, expected performance this season, and college potential. Two-way players are given special consideration.
One player will be introduced each day throughout the preseason, in random order (the players are not ranked). This is the third installment of the series.
Justice Hardy, Wyomissing
| 5-10 | 185 | Junior | RB/WR/CB/S/KR |
Fights break out all the time in the coaching room at Wyomissing. The various position coaches all want Justice Hardy working with their group.
He’s a natural tailback with sprinter’s speed but is so athletic and has such great body control going up for the ball that he’s dangerous at wide receiver, too. After just one varsity season Spartans head coach Bob Wolfrum compared him favorably to Max Hurleman, who played at Notre Dame and is now training with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Hardy’s a lockdown cornerback – he was Defensive Back of the Year in Section 4 of the Lancaster-Lebanon League — but also a weight room devotee who’s easily strong enough to play linebacker. He might slide over and play some safety this season because he has such an understanding of Wyomissing’s diverse defense and can direct teammates from that spot.
The Wyo staff spent the offseason looking for offensive line candidates because they were so thin there. Hardy no doubt could be a good Wing-T guard because of his footwork, discipline, and strength.
“He’s as good a blocker as we have,” Wolfrum said.
“His versatility is a huge asset to our team,” said offensive line coach Steve O’Neil. “We can move him seamlessly from halfback to wide receiver, from cornerback to safety, depending on what we need.”
In addition to being the fastest guy and best athlete on the field, the 5-10, 185-pound junior is a student of the game and fast learner.
“If we switched his position, he’d have it down the next day,” Wolfrum said.
Hardy chuckles at the notion of playing guard; that would be like hooking Secretariat up to a plow. And yet if sent over to the offensive line group during practice he’d do it – and be good at it.
“I’m ready to step up wherever the coaches need me, wherever the team needs me,” he said humbly. “I’ll play wherever.”
His best position is one that sees the football in his hands. He averaged 9.3 yards per carry as a sophomore and found the end zone 11 times on just 84 rushes; overall he had a team-leading 15 TDs.
“When you give him the ball you always think you’ve got a shot (at scoring),” Wolfrum said.
On another team, in another system, he’d get 25 carries a game, rush for over 2,000 yards and score 30 touchdowns. That will not happen this season. The Spartans have a plethora of backfield weapons and their system is based upon, and succeeds because of, the fact that the carries are divided almost equally among the three backs.
Because of Wyomissing’s nearly unprecedented backfield depth Hardy won’t even be in the backfield all the time; he might take just half the snaps there.
Hardy’s fine with his limited touches. It’s not like it cost him a chance to make All-State (which he did) or catch the eyes of college coaches (which he has).
“Everyone has a big role in our offense,” he said. “That’s the good thing about the Wing-T: No one needs 200 carries because we have enough guys to rotate in and run the ball.”
He’s almost like the fine china; so precious it’s brought out only on special occasions.
Week 8 last season at Twin Valley was one of those occasions. The Spartans were facing an unbeaten Raiders team ranked No. 1 in the state in Class 4A. They needed to be at their best to win and they were in large because Hardy rose above the fray.
He rushed for a career-high 196 yards on 16 carries with a pair of scores and had a pair of critical receptions on the way to a program-record 297 yards from scrimmage. The Spartans won 34-24.
Hardy opened his sophomore season by running for four touchdowns in a much-anticipated match-up with state small-school power Southern Columbia. It gave Wolfrum another win over Jim Roth, the winningest coach in Pennsylvania history.
“I’m a much better coach when he’s carrying the ball,” Wolfrum quipped.
You’ll never hear Hardy talk about his achievements or bring attention to himself on the field. No histronics after scoring a touchdown; no Heisman poses in the end zone. That’s just one of the reasons Wolfrum appreciates him so much; Hardy fits seamlessly into the team-first culture Berks winningest coach has built.
Hardy stepped right into the starting lineup on defense as a freshman, a rare accomplishment at Wyomissing. Teammate Chase Eisenhower, who has played with him since their Mites and Midgets days, did not bat an eye.
“He’s always been a step ahead of everybody,” Eisenhower said.
Hardy pulled in his first Division I offer in the spring, from Liberty. Not long after the big boys – Penn State, Notre Dame, Virginia, and other Power 5 programs – began reaching out. He’s not very tall but he’s lineman-strong and fast – he ran a 10.87 at the Firing Meet in spring.
He wasn’t full speed much of last year because of a nagging hamstring injury but he’s fully healthy now.
He was named one of Wyomissing’s four captains for this season.
“As a freshman and sophomore, he didn’t open his mouth,” Wolfrum said. “Now he sounds like a leader.”
“I think he’s got the best work ethic I’ve ever seen,” Eisenhower said. “He’s always putting in the work; that sets him apart from everybody.”
2025 ‘Starting Lineup’
| Logan Cammauf | Schuylkill Valley | RB/LB | Sr. |
| Justice Hardy | Wyomissing | RB/WR/S/CB/KR | Jr. |
| Lebron Leaf | Governor Mifflin | QB/LB | Sr, |
