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COLLEGE FOOTBALL: NOV 25 Florida at Florida State

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INDIANAPOLIS – It doesn’t take long to feel Anthony Richardson’s confidence.

But don’t mistake that for a guy who walks into the NFL at 20 years old thinking he’s got everything figured out.

“I am going to bring energy. I am going to bring hard work. God willing, I’m going to bring a Super Bowl,” was how Richardson summed up his plans with the Indianapolis Colts.

An emotional Richardson became the 4th overall pick, something he had a feeling about leading into Thursday night.

And the man who has called Gainesville home for his entire teenage deals will now head to Indianapolis.

“They called me before the draft and kind of let me know if things worked in favor of their way they were going to pick me up,” Richardson explained.

“I kind of had a feeling that they were going to select me because I fell in love with the people in the building when I was there on my visit. Just talking to coach, just talking to Chris Ballard – just talking to those guys and getting familiar with them it felt like home. Now they picked me up and I’m ready to come home.”

Part of Richardson’s mutual interest with the Colts came from him watching Shane Steichen put an offense around Jalen Hurts in Philly.

Given the dual-threat ability of Hurts, Richardson was a fan watching the Eagles offense work.

The Colts made it clear during the draft process a big selling point for them would be how the quarterback is wired.

Preparation is a separator in Shane Steichen’s mind, and Richardson appears to check that box.

“I’m wiling to work hard, work harder than anybody,” the 20-year-old QB said. “Two, God blessed me with physical abilities that not every quarterback has. People see me, they don’t think I’m a quarterback. I’m not an average quarterback and I can do things other QBs can’t do. I definitely take pride in that. Then I’m also willing to learn.

“That’s why I feel like I’m one of the greatest.”

Now, Richardson walks into a franchise rich in quarterback history.

That’s something Richardson certainly took note of.

“I definitely take pride in it,” the one-year starter at Florida said. “You talked about Peyton (Manning), you talked about Andrew (Luck), you know, great QBs, legends right there. For me to be picked as high as I was, it lets me know that Colts Nation believes in me. So, I’m definitely going to put the work in, make sure I’m up there with those guys.”

Inevitably, a quarterback selection this high, for a franchise so desperate to find one, brings gobs and gobs of pressure.

Richardson sounds prepared for it.

“I feel like I’ve been dealing with pressure my whole life,” the Florida product said. “So, pressure isn’t anything new for me and then playing at the University of Florida, I felt like there was a lot of pressure in that as well.

“Pressure doesn’t do anything but create a legend. Pressure is only hard if you’re not prepared, so I’m going to make sure I’m prepared to the best of my ability so I can make things work for this franchise.”

 

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