Former UNLV sharpshooter Joe Darger is all business
Editor’s note: The Review-Journal’s “Where Are They Now” series catches up with athletes who played high school, college or professional sports in the Las Vegas Valley. Stories will run at least once a week.
UNLV takes great pride in its record-setting made 3-point streak, which stands at 1,102 games. The Rebels’ history of quality long-range shooters includes such well-known names as Anderson Hunt and Freddie Banks.
Then there’s Joe Darger, a key player on two UNLV NCAA Tournament teams in the 2000s. He is tied with Oscar Bellfield for fourth on UNLV’s all-time list of made 3-pointers with 207.
UNLV fans got to know him well as a player from 2005 to 2009. But for a short time, in 2007, he became a national story when it was revealed he grew up in a polygamous family with two mothers.
Darger told the Review-Journal back then that he initially felt out of place knowing his friends didn’t have that type of family arrangement but that he “got used to it.”
UNLV fans mostly cared that Darger could hit the 3, and his 41.1 career shooting percentage from that range is tied with Anthony Jones for the fifth best in program history.
Darger was part of two Mountain West tournament championship teams. His 2007 team advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament and in 2008 the Rebels made the second round.
“I think one of the big things was camaraderie on the team,” Darger said. “Everyone got along really well and were friends off the court, too.”
Today, Darger, 33, co-owns two businesses, both with locations in Arizona and Utah. He lives in Mesa, Arizona, with his wife of seven years, Kylie, and two children, Mila (7) and Isla (3).
One company is a consulting firm that helps businesses grow, whether it be helping with inventory, staffing or even establishing a rewards program to attract customers.
“We take a 360-degree look at their business and figure out what’s working well for them and what’s not working well and ways we can help make them more profitable,” Darger said.
His other business is a remodeling company that helps owners spruce up their homes.
He also co-owned a computer business that Darger said was successful until Google changed policies that made it more difficult to reach customers. Darger and his partner sold that business.
“When I got out of school, I worked at a couple of places and always wanted to be an entrepreneur and do things on my own,” Darger said. “I’ve had a couple of businesses since then and have learned a lot from running my own businesses.”
Maybe one day he will appear on the popular entrepreneur show “Shark Tank.”
It wouldn’t be the first time that Darger has been in the spotlight.
Contact reporter Mark Anderson at manderson@reviewjournal.com. Follow @markanderson65 on Twitter.