He was a tight end for Texas A&M University on a football scholarship and worked as an electronic engineer at Douglas Aircraft in Santa Monica, California. Hardin starred as Moss Andrews in the TV series Riptide in 1969. He starred in several movies including I Married a Monster from Outer Space, The Space Children, As Young as We Are, Last Train from Gun Hill, Merrill’s Marauders, The Chapman Report, PT 109, Palm Springs weekend, Wall of Noise, Man of the Cursed Valley, Battle of the Bulge, Savage Pajamas, Death on the Run, Custer of the West, Berserk!, Ragan, Terrible Day of the Big Gundown, Drummer of Vengeance, Holy Water Joe, Fire!, The Zoo Gang, and Rescue Me.