2002 Football Roster

Tommy Richardson
- Position:
- Defensive Back
- Height:
- 6-3
- Weight:
- 205
- Class:
- Freshman
- Hometown:
- Miami, FL
- High School:
- North Miami Beach
Enters the season as the starter at outside linebacker.
2004 - Junior Season
Switched from safety to linebacker and started all 12 games at linebacker Tied for second on the team with 67 tackles, including 39 solo and 28 assists Also had four pass breakups, three quarterback hurries, two fumble recoveries and forced a fumble Led the team with a career-best 14 tackles, including 10 primary stops, against Boston College in the Continental Tire Bowl Had a game-high seven tackles in the win at Duke and recovered a fumble at the Blue Devils 23-yard line Carolina scored on the ensuing drive Had six tackles in the win over Wake Forest Made a team-high nine tackles and forced a fumble against No. 18 Virginia Tech Posted seven tackles and made a 3-yard tackle for loss in the win over No. 4 Miami Had 12 tackles against Utah, including four primary stops and eight assists Also broke up two passes Played one of the best games of his career against Utah according to the coaching staff Made three tackles against NC State Started against Louisville and had three tackles, including two primary and one assist Did not play against Georgia Tech due to an internal disciplinary matter Started at Virginia and made three tackles Made his first career start against William & Mary.
2003 - Sophomore Season
Played in four games at safety and on special teams Saw action on 60 snaps Saw his most extensive playing time with 28 snaps against Maryland Also saw significant playing time in the season-opener against Florida State Had four tackles on the season, including two against the Seminoles and two against Maryland Had a 1-yard tackle for loss against FSU.
2002 - Freshman Season
Was one of seven true freshmen to see action Played in 11 games primarily on special teams Also was a reserve free safety Made one tackle at Maryland Played 104 snaps, including a season-high 19 snaps against Maryland.
North Miami Beach High School
Three-year starter at defensive back and wide receiver North Miami Beach had its best three years ever while he was on the team, including an 8-2 record his senior year Team captain as a junior and senior Made 76 tackles, two sacks, three interceptions and one fumble recovery as a senior defensive back Had 23 receptions for 487 yards and three touchdowns as a wide receiver Also blocked four field goals Rated the No. 51 prospect in Florida by SuperPrep Had 143 career tackles, 52 assists, five interceptions, six sacks and 28 tackles for loss Second-team all-state as a senior Ranked among the Top 100 prospects in Florida by the Orlando Sentinel All-county as a senior Student Body President Coached by Jeff Bertani Also plays basketball.
Personal
Born Tommy Antoine Richardson on August 8, 1984 Nickname is "T-Rich" Enjoys poetry, reading and relaxing Pretended to be Deion Sanders and Ronnie Lott as a kid Wears No. 8 because he was born on the eighth day of the eighth month Would like to switch places for a day with Michael Jordan Says the best thing about being a football player at Carolina is "the fans. Thank You." Favorite former Carolina football player is Natrone Means Favorite NFL team is Dallas African-American history major.