Eric Richards

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Eric Richards

Eric Richards in college
No. 67 – London Royals
Position:	Linebacker
Personal information
Born:	(1998-09-20)September 20, 1998 (aged 62) Sheperdsville , Kentucky, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight:	245 lb (111 kg)
Career information
High school:	Buillit Lick
College:	University of Kentucky
Career history
Roster status:	Active
Career highlights and awards
"
Career DSFL statistics
Total tackles: 116 Tackles for loss: 2 Pass deflections: 7 Interceptions: 1 Forced fumbles: 5 Fumble recoveries: 1"

Eric Richards (born September 20, 1998) is an American football linebacker for the London Royals of the Developmental Simulation Football League (DSFL).

Early years

Eric James Richards was born to Dean and Jane Richards on September 20th 1998 after both had graduated from college. He grew up admiring his father who was a highly touted cornerback for the University of Kentucky Wildcats until an extremely nasty hit from an Offensive Tackle while he was trying to return an interception tore his knee apart. This injury ended Dean's college career, but he has said he has no regrets. Eric grew up in the small town of Sheperdsville Kentucky and would make frequent trips to both downtown Louisville and all the way to Lexington to watch Louisville cardinals and Kentucky Wildcats games respectively.

He went high school at Buillit Lick High School, and at first wanted to play basketball. Unfortunately he never had the height for basketball, so he took up football on a whim and found out he was pretty good at it. He became linebacker and set school records. He once famously hit an opposing QB for the Fairdale Bulldogs named Sam Jared so hard, that he quit after the game. He also met his now fiance Clair Jones at the school at a drama club meeting, and they have been together ever since.

He lead Buillit Lick to the quarter finals of the State Championships, but an unfortunate injury to the quarterback ended up ending thier run there. After his high school career was up, he was disappointed to find out he was only a 3 star recruit due to the relative small size of his school and the fact that his school didn't make the semifinals. He was left with his final 3 choices of ether the University of Kentucky, the University of Louisville, or the University of Miami of Ohio, and decided to follow in his father's footsteps and join the Wildcats.

College career

Eric's college football career at the University of Kentucky got off to a fast start, with him racking off 37 tackles and 12 TFL in his first year, famously tackling and stripping Florida Gators Quarterback Matt Smith to seal a 28-21 victory for the Wildcats. They would ultimately go 11-2, winning the Rose Bowl against Oregon. During the game Eric would get 9 tackles and 4 TFL and manage to deflect and intercept the ball at the goaline to seal a Wildcats victory. After the game UK coach Mark Stoops had this to say about Eric:

""As a freshman he is already the heart and soul of this defense. He has been working extremely hard to be the best player he can be""

Eric would become a Freshman All-American, 2nd team Sec All-American, and was a finalist for the Butkus award, ultimately losing to Clemson linebacker Zane Johnson. He would continue to rack up major numbers in his sophomore season, getting 43 tackles and 20 TFL. He would get another All-American nod in the SEC, and an 1st team All-American nod in the NCAA. He would actually win the Butkus award that year while leading his team to a 10-3 record an another bowl victory.

In his senior season he was very close to breaking a school record for tackles in a career, ending up with 50 tackles and 22 TFL. He would miss a few final tackles, but again received All-American nods. He announced he was declaring for the draft on social media and is ready for whatever comes next.

College career statistics

Use this page to get the stats table template.

Professional career

DSFL career

Eric's was drafted 17th overall by the London Royals in the DSFL Draft and was pretty quickly a difference maker, racking up 50 tackles in the 4 preseason games. He also had 17 tackles in a game, almost reaching a record. He would continue to make an impact even in the slot where he didn't have as many tackles but ended up making more important plays. He would lead the league in forced fumbles with 5 in the regular season and also got an interception early in the season.

The Royals would start out winning 4 out of 5, and Eric would make big plays in the wins. However, they would hit a skid and lose the next 4 games, leading to them losing thier top spot of the division. Luckily for them, they would buckle down and would manage to win enough to make the playoffs over the Portland Phythons mostly because they won a game when they really needed to and the Phythons ended up losing thier last two games making the Royals make it with an 6-8 record.

In the playoffs, Eric and the rest of the defense buckled down against the Minnesota Grey Ducks, with Eric getting a fumble recovery in thier 13-10 overtime victory. This lead the Royals to thier first ever Ultimini game in just thier second year. Unfortunately the Royals offense couldn't wake up that game despite the defense playing hard, leading to them losing to the Tijuana Luchadores 6-10. Despite this, it was a great season for the team and Eric would play extremely hard that game, including an interception.

Overall, Eric's stats lead to him being in the Linebacker of the Year talks, with him also getting 116 tackles in the regular season. He also had 2 tackles for loss and 7 pass deflections. Eric has said that while he doesn't expect to win the award, the fact that he had such a great year is more then enough for him. He is ready for the next challenge in the NSFL and is anxious and excited to see where he will be drafted."

ISFL career

Pre-draft measurables

Ht	Wt	40‑yd dash	20‑ss	3‑cone	Vert jump	Broad	BP	Wonderlic
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	245 lb (111 kg)	4.46 s	4.38 s	7.15 s	31.8 in (0.81 m)	10 ft 4.4 in (3.16 m)	34 reps	39

Eric Richards first ISFL season was rough in terms of overall record, but good in terms of growth. He made the switch to Safety when it was a much needed position in the team he was drafted to, the Chicago Butchers. Despite the team only going 3-13, Eric contributed every game but one. He had a total of 67 tackles, 4 sacks that he started getting towards the end of the season, and 2 interceptions. He also had 4 pass deflection.

Those stats may seem like a major downgrade from his Royals days, but you have to understand that it was his first true season in the ISFL. It was also his first season as a Safety. When all of that is considered, his year might actually be good for a rookie. He certainly wasn't in the talks for Rookie of the Year, but he still tried his best on a team that had major defensive issues. A lot of defensive players on the team were also young. The star of the show was rookie linebacker Hingle Mcringleberry and Cornerback Tyrone Shields, and Eric faded into the background. That was fine for him however, it just meant that he had to work harder to truly break through to the next level.

Eric had said about his first ISFL year, "it's all about growth. I knew it was definitely going to be a rebuilding year and I believe in our General Managers and Coaches, especially with the amazing offseason we had. Next season will be an improvement, and soon everyone will be paying attention to us. You can absolutely believe that

Professional career statistics

Career statistics			Tackles			Sacks	Interceptions		Other
Season	Team	Games	Reg	TFL	Total	Sack	Int	IntTD	DefTD	FFum	FRec	PD	Safety
2037 (S22)	Royals	14	116	2	118	1	1	0	0	5	1	7	0
2038 (S23)	Butchers	16	67	0	67	4	2	0	0	0	0	4	0

Achievements and records

Awards

Individual

• S22 DSFL Linebacker of the Year