Clemson Assistant Kyle Richardson Has Eyes Set On Being 'Best TEs Coach In Country'
As the new tight ends coach at Clemson, Kyle Richardson is aiming high.
After spending the past six years on the support staff, Richardson is not only taking over the tight ends, but he's also the Tigers' new passing game coordinator. However, first season or not, Richardson is approaching this new opportunity with the mindset of being the best tight ends coach in the nation.
"Just to me, every day that I come to work I want to be the best tight ends coach in the country," Richardson said. "Regardless of passing game, run game, you know, tight ends got to do it all. They got to be heavy in the run game, they got to be heavy in the passing game. They got to be able to be in the box and outside the box, so my job is to come in regardless of the passing game coordinator title, come in and be the best tight ends coach in the country."
At the same time, Richardson is also determined to do it his own way. An avid lover of music, Richardson has found a way to incorporate that love into team meetings, and his players have responded.
"Yeah, I love music," Richardson said. "So that's one thing they've had to get used to. I try I go into meetings, and I'll play music and we do our thing."
It goes beyond just listening to music in team meetings, though. Richardson frequently gives his group history lessons on the subject and being a big fan of hip-hop, one of the most recent lessons involved west coast rap.
"And usually I give them a music history lesson, before whatever music I'm going to play them," Richardson said. "So the other day I gave them the west coast rap, kind of from the late 80s to carry us through the early 2000s. I gave them a history lesson and they thoroughly enjoyed learning more about... I mean you gotta teach more than just what's on the field, am I right? We're trying to develop the whole tight end here on and off the field."
While the intent is on keeping the players loose and engaged, the end goal is on the football aspect. And as seriously as Richardson takes his responsibilities as the passing game coordinator, the end goal is developing his tight ends into being the best players they can be.
"I'm gonna put my input in on the passing game and then put it in on the run game," Richardson said. "Because at the end of the day, I've been an offensive coordinator, I've been a head coach, and you got to be able to obviously dabble in it all as an offensive coordinator. So I got the passing game coordinator title, and that's great, but at the end of the day I'm the tight ends coach and it's my job to put them in the most successful position they can be, day in and day out."
The Tigers are among the favorites to win the national title according to Fanduel at +1000.
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