Colby Richardson’s prayers, determination prepares him for breakout year at LSU

In sports, when certain teams approach players, it’s a no-brainer to say yes. Whether its Real Madrid, the Golden State Warriors or the Yankees, some teams can walk into negotiations with a swagger and confidence of success. The same can be said in college football, with teams like Alabama, Clemson and Georgia holding a strong monopoly over the best recruits, only finding failures when competing against each other.

LSU could definitely be added to that list, but for one LSU recruit, it wasn’t as straightforward as it might have seen. When he was approached by LSU, defensive back COlby Richardson was already committed to Colorado State. But when the Tigers came calling, it wasn’t a straight forward acceptance for Richardson.

“First of all, I prayed about it,” Richardson said while talking on the Jordy Culotta Show. “Just getting that call would actually change my mind and knowing that I could be go back home and play for a great fan base that really you know show a lot of great things out there in Death Valley…that's what my biggest thing was: coming back home for my last year.”

Richardson, before entering the transfer portal for his 6th season of college ball, had been a standout at McNeese State, as the New Orleans native was a part of the Cowboys team for 4 years. Unfortunately, much of his time in Lake Charles, LA was marred by injury, but Richardson still showed out. In the summer of 2022, he opted for the transfer portal and had committed to Colorado State to play his last season until a call from LSU’s associate head coach and recruiting legend Frank Wilson changed his mind.

Since he’s been with the Tigers, Richardson has put an extra effort into getting in to better shape and condition. When he arrived at LSU he was 167 lbs and after an intense workout regiment he is 197 lbs. His goal is to play at 200 lbs. For Richardson, he feels this level of intensity is needed to really take his game to the next level.

“It's just called hard work really. It's something you got to do when nobody else doing it,” Richardson said. “Sometimes I be up Saturday mornings, Sunday mornings, you know, some days where people will be resting, you know you just got to take the opportunity to try to better yourself.”

Richardson has been a standout this past summer. Beyond the highlights of his matchups against star wide receiver Keyshon Boutte, Richardson has looked impressively sharp to the extent that he is expected to be the number one corner back for the Tigers. Richardson adds a lot of excitement to the LSU defense, but he says it is all thanks to his dedication and intensity.

Richardson is also looking to follow in the footsteps of Tyrann Mathieu, who grew up with Richardson’s brothers. Richardson sees Mathieu as a role model and wants to ensure that he will do everything he can to reach the heights Mathieu has.

“I've been doing this since I was four so it's something I love it's somewhere that I want to be,” Richardson said. “I gotta come here and do my job for something I love to do so that's the way I'm taking this season.”