Coach | Family Atmosphere, Player Development Key To Notre Dame Landing Scrap Richardson

Robert Sanders was proud of the way Antavious Richardson‍ handled the recruiting process, which led to the 2025 Georgia athlete announcing his commitment to Notre Dame last week.

“I'm just happy for him and relieved,” says Sanders, Richardson’s head coach at Greenville High School. 

“He got that big weight off his back and now he can just focus on Greenville and Notre Dame. He doesn't have to worry about taking all these phone calls and all kinds of stuff. I'm happy for him. I really am.”

Richardson, who was previously committed to South Florida, chose the Irish over Alabama among other offers.

“It was close,” his coach says. “I think what turned the tide was that he just was compelled to go with his gut, his heart.”

Sanders acknowledged people trying to advise the 6-foot-2, 170-pounder that if he wanted to chase NFL dreams, he should choose the Crimson Tide, but Richardson, who goes by the nickname Scrap, believes he can reach The League just the same from South Bend.

“It's all the other things; the academics, the networking, the family atmosphere, the non-party lifestyle,” the coach says. “He's not that type of kid who likes to do all that partying. He doesn't like that. He just likes the family atmosphere that Notre Dame has up there. That's what it is.”

Making sure Richardson found a place where he could be developed as a player was paramount among Sanders’ concerns during the process and he came to the same conclusion.

“The thing that I'm impressed is that Notre Dame takes kids who might not be primadonna five-stars and develop them,” he says. “I think that's what he wants. He wants to be developed. He knows he's not a finished product. When he sees some of the guys who are going to be first-round draft choices who came to Notre Dame not as highly-heralded, that's what impressed him more anything. 

“He talked to Ben Morrison. And he told Scrap that he wasn't a five-plus star. He said, 'Look at me.' Then he talked about some other kids who are on the roster. He was like, 'They're going to develop you here.' And he said, 'Even though I'm about to go to The League, I'm going to still be coming back and working with you.' He was impressed with that. He was impressed with the family atmosphere and the player development. The main thing is the academics and the player development and the family atmosphere.”

Sanders was also encouraged by the reactions from Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman, receivers coach Mike Brown and the rest of the Irish coaches when Richardson informed them of his decision. 

“I don't know where they were, but the whole coaching staff started screaming and jumping up and down,” he recalls. “That meant something to me, that Notre Dame would have that much love for my kid, I'm happy. So now he can just focus on football, just focus on Greenville and taking us far in the playoffs and even his legacy. He's already left it, but we are trying to do some special things.”

Sanders is looking forward to his first trip to South Bend, which will come when he accompanies Richardson for the Florida State game next month.

“We're looking forward to it. I'm excited, man.”