High School

Mecole Hardman, former Elbert County (Georgia) WR, catches game-winning TD in Super Bowl LVIII

Hardman ends Super Bowl LVIII in overtime with game winner

Andy Villamarzo

Mecole Hardman didn’t start the 2023 NFL season with Kansas City Chiefs, but he ended it with the now back-to-back Super Bowl champions. 

The former Elbert County (Georgia) wide receiver became the hero of Sunday night’s Super Bowl LVIII, with Hardman being the recipient of a short 3-yard touchdown pass, which was the game-winner. 

Hardman’s catch gave Kansas City a thrilling 25-22 victory in overtime over the San Francisco 49ers, lifting the Chiefs to their third Super Bowl championship in the last five seasons.

Hardman, who played at Elbert County (2012-2015), missed last year's game after being placed on injured reserve, but he did appear in both Super Bowl LIV in 2020 in Miami and Super Bowl LV in 2021 in Tampa. 

Before starting at the University of Georgia, Hardman was a 5-star wide receiver at Elbert County and helped lead the Blue Devils to a 11-3 season in 2015. 

Super Bowl rosters include eight former Georgia high school stars

-- Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @sblivega  

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Andy Villamarzo
ANDY VILLAMARZO

Andy Villamarzo has been a sports writer in the Tampa Bay (FL) Area since 2007, writing for publications such as Tampa Bay Times, The Tampa Tribune, The Suncoast News, Tampa Beacon, Hernando Sun to name a few. Andy resides out of the Tarpon Springs, FL area and started as a writer with SB Live Sports in the summer of 2022 covering the Tampa Bay Area. He has quickly become one of Florida's foremost authorities on high school sports, appearing frequently on podcasts, radio programs and digital broadcasts as an expert on team rankings, recruiting and much more.

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