Drew Richmond is adjusting to life on the left side of the offensive line by going through life using his left hand more.
“I’ve been texting with my left hand to try to get everything better coordinated,” Richmond said. “It was just something I tried to consistently do. I would walk through the door and use my left hand, just trying to get comfortable with it.”
The redshirt freshman Richmond says he has matured and grown as a player after his first season on campus. As Richmond makes the switch to the left side of the offensive line, he expressed the challenge that he will face at a new position next season.
“It’s the coordination,” Richmond, who is receiving first-team reps this spring at left tackle, said. “You do everything with your right hand and now you’ve got to do it with your left.”
Richmond admitted that redshirting was a tough experience, but credited Curt Maggitt and Alvin Kamara for encouraging him throughout the season.
“It’s difficult,” he said. “It was hard, but guys stuck around me. Alvin, Curt, they made sure they were always in my ear giving me wisdom. I had to embrace it, move on and get better from it. When I redshirted, it was to get more comfortable on the left side.”
Richmond also said that fellow lineman Kyler Kerbyson was a big inspiration to his development as a football player and as a person.
Physically, Richmond says that he benefitted from a lot of work over the offseason.
“I’ve gotten stronger,” Richmond said. “I’ve got to continue to get stronger. It’s a mental game. I’m starting to realize there’s certain things you’ve got to study. You study your opponent.”
In practice, Richmond said that he has to go up against the best defensive end in the country, but he isn’t talking about Derek Barnett.
“I know for a fact, for me Corey Vereen is probably the best defensive end in the country,” he said. “Just simply because he’s got a lot of things that other defensive ends don’t have as far as speed to power. That’s probably one of the most difficult things to block.”
