Antonio Richardson

Antonio Richardson
No. 78
Position: Offensive tackle
Personal information
Date of birth: (1992-02-24) February 24, 1992
Place of birth: Mt. Pleasant, Tennessee
Height: 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Weight: 336 lb (152 kg)
Career information
High school: Nashville (TN) Pearl Cohn
College: Tennessee
Undrafted: 2014
Career history
Career highlights and awards
  • Second-team All-SEC (2012, 2013)
Career NFL statistics
Player stats at NFL.com

Antonio James "Tiny" Richardson (born February 24, 1992) is a former American football offensive tackle for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Tennessee.

High school

Richardson spent most of his childhood in Mount Pleasant, Tennessee, before moving to Nashville when he was 15.[1] He played high school football and competed in track at Ensworth, a Nashville private school, from 2008 to 2010. During his junior year in 2009, he led an offensive line that did not give up any sacks.[2] Midway through his senior season in 2010, Richardson transferred to Nashville's Pearl-Cohn High School for academic reasons. Due to TSSAA rules, he was ineligible to play for Pearl-Cohn.[3] During his career at Ensworth, Richardson registered 60 pancake blocks.[2]

In track & field, Richardson was one of the state's top performers in the throwing events. At the 2010 Scott Hartman Meet, he placed 4th in the shot put, with a throw of 15.06 meters.[4] He won the discus throw event at the 2010 TSSAA D-II Middle Sectional Championships, recording a top-throw of 49.26 meters.[5]

In spite of missing part of his senior year, Richardson was a consensus four-star prospect.[2] He was rated by Rivals as the top overall prospect in Tennessee, and the seventh-best offensive tackle in the nation.[2] He played in the 2011 U.S. Army All-American Bowl.[2]

College career

Richardson committed to play at Tennessee on February 2, 2011, one of the Vols' highest-rated recruits that year.[6] He played in 12 games as a backup during his freshman year in 2011, including a few snaps as an extra fullback in Tennessee's games against Vanderbilt and Kentucky.[2] As a sophomore in 2012 he started all 12 games at left tackle.[1] He was widely praised for his performance against All-American defensive end Jadeveon Clowney in Tennessee's 38-35 loss to South Carolina. Richardson largely contained Clowney until late in the game, when Clowney managed to elude him and force a game-saving fumble.[7][8] Richardson was named to the All-SEC Second Team by the Associated Press at the end of the season.[2]

At the start of his junior campaign in 2013, Richardson was named to the Coaches' Preseason All-SEC team, and was placed on the Outland Trophy watch list. He started in all twelve games for the Vols in the 2013 season, helping the Vols' backfield accumulate 2,261 rushing yards, the most for the school since 2004.[2] He was again named second-team All-SEC at the end of the season.[9]

On December 6, 2013, Richardson announced that he would forgo his senior season and enter the 2014 NFL Draft.[10]

Professional career

2014 NFL Draft

In February 2014, Richardson was one of five Tennessee players invited to participate in the 2014 NFL Combine.[11]

Pre-draft measurables
Ht WtArm lengthHand size 40-yd dash 10-yd split 20-yd split 20-ss 3-cone Vert Broad BP
6 ft 6 in 336 lb35 in 10 1⁄4 in 5.30 s 1.81 s 5.06 s 8.02 s 31 in 9 ft 4 in 36 reps
20-ss, 3-cone, Broad and Vert Jump from Tennessee Pro Day; All other values from NFL Combine[12][13]

Richardson signed with the Minnesota Vikings as an undrafted rookie free agent on May 10, 2014. He retired from the NFL on May 13, 2015.

References

  1. 1 2 Patrick Brown, "Antonio Richardson aims to be large leader on UT's offensive line," Chattanooga Times Free Press, 26 August 2012. Retrieved: 6 December 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Antonio Richardson Bio," UTSports.com. Retrieved: 6 December 2013.
  3. ↑ "State's Top Prospect Antonio Richardson Enrolled at Pearl-Cohn," The Tennessean, 28 October 2010. Accessed at the Knoxville News Sentinel website, 6 December 2013.
  4. ↑ http://tn.milesplit.com/meets/69787/results/116492
  5. ↑ http://tn.milesplit.com/meets/65827/results/123782
  6. ↑ 2011 Tennessee Football Commitment List, Volquest.com. Retrieved: 6 December 2011.
  7. ↑ Patrick Brown, "Tiny Incentive: UT Vols' Richardson Eager for Jadeveon Clowney Rematch," Chattanooga Times Free Press, 16 October 2013. Retrieved: 6 December 2013.
  8. ↑ Steven Godfrey, "The Jadeveon Clowney Question Will Be Answered in Tennessee Rematch," SBNation.com, 17 October 2013. Retrieved: 6 December 2013.
  9. ↑ "2013 All-SEC Football Team Announced". SEC Digital Network. December 10, 2013.
  10. ↑ Chase Goodbread, "Vols OL Antonio Richardson Elects to Enter NFL Draft," NFL.com. Retrieved: 6 December 2013.
  11. ↑ Larry Fleming, "Five Ex-Tennessee Players Earn Invites to NFL Combine," The Chattanoogan, 7 February 2014.
  12. ↑ http://www.nfl.com/combine/profiles/antonio%20-richardson?id=2543508
  13. ↑ "Vols Hold NFL Pro Day," UTSports.com, 2 April 2014.

External links

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