The Spokane Shock added length to their secondary and boosted local interest in their roster Sunday, when the Indoor Football League team announced the signing of former standout Washington State cornerback Sean Harper Jr.

The 6-foot-1, 180-pound Harper was a fixture in the Cougars’ defense for six games during their 11-win season in 2018. He missed the back half of the year because of a shoulder injury.

When healthy, Harper was asked to blanket tall, big-play receiving targets, and he typically fared well.

A native of Hartwell, Georgia, Harper played in all of WSU’s 13 games and made two starts in his debut season on the Palouse in 2017.

He tallied 45 tackles, 10 pass breakups, an interception and a forced fumble across 19 games – eight starts – in his Cougar career after a two-year stay at Holmes Community College in Mississippi. Harper had signed with the Cougs out of Hart County High in 2015, but had to take the juco route to meet academic eligibility requirements.

He stayed committed to WSU, and after graduating from the Pullman school, Harper attended the Houston Texans’ rookie mini camp as an undrafted free agent, but didn’t receive a contract. He signed with the CFL’s B.C. Lions in March 2020. The league’s 2020 season was canceled because of the coronavirus and Harper never appeared in a CFL game.

The Shock’s season begins March 18 at Spokane Arena against the defending IFL champion Massachusetts Pirates.