Unsung Player? It Took Gundy A Few Seconds but J.P. Richardson

STILLWATER – With so much buzz in the preseason about the likes of last year’s ball skills sensation Jaden Bray and the dramatic comeback of super senior Braydon Johnson plus the speedy brothers inside at the slot with Brennan Presley and little brother Braylin you didn’t hear as much about John Paul Richardson. The football and track standout from Missouri City Ridge Point wasn’t highly recruited until Cowboys head coach Mike Gundy called him and offered him a scholarship. Gundy and offensive coordinator and receivers coach Kasey Dunn liked what they saw on video. They also liked that he ran the third leg on a serious state championship contending 4X100 meter relay team. Mike Gundy liked that he was the son of a Gundy contemporary in Texas A&M and later Houston Oilers quarterback Bucky Richardson.

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Richardson playing as a senior at Texas A&M.

Richardson was a couple of years younger than Gundy but he was on that Aggie team that came to Stillwater and got blitzed 52-15. In his Aggie career, Richardson threw for over 3,000-yards and ran for just over 2,000-yards.

Gundy connected with John Paul and with his parents. After the Oklahoma State offer more came pouring in for Richardson, but he stayed with the Pokes. Last season he had 25 catches as a freshman and zero drops. He caught everything targeted to him. So, Monday when I asked Gundy if there was any player that surprised him in a good way in the grading of the Central Michigan win. He kind of paused and then answered.

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Richardson breaks a tackle after the catch on his first touchdown of the 2022 season.

"You know, JP (John Paul Richardson) played pretty good,” Gundy said of the first receiver to score in 2022 for the Cowboys. “He had the catches and then after that you didn't see him much, but overall he played really good. He pass protected on a rush end on a five-technique and stoned him and held him out and did a great job there. He would be a guy that played really good, in my opinion."

Richardson was quick to explode as he finished that first drive with 45-yards pitch and run from Spencer Sanders. Most of Richardson’s four receptions came early in the game and went for 72-yards with that one touchdown. He was targeted five times, so he did have a miss, I think it qualified as a drop. Hey, it was eventually going to happen. The blocking part was exceptional and he can be spotted blocking downfield after receptions by fellow receivers. The young man is a baller.

Is it time to start thinking of him as a surprise find in recruiting and more like the blue chip many missed?

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Time to start thinking of #17 as a playmaker.

"He's gotta make plays, but he's fast, he's shifty, he's tough, he's intelligent, he's learning to be a good route runner and he likes to play football,” Gundy said to that inquiry. “That's really who he is right now. Has he arrived yet? No, he hasn't arrived yet, but he's moving toward that. Now he's just lacking live reps, experience. He needs 150 plays in live games to kind of get over that hump, but he's heading in that direction."

Honestly, he’s getting close. Even though, he does not play quarterback. He is a chip off the old block, something that Gundy can appreciate and does.