UVA Uncovers Gem For Commitment

The Virginia coaching staff may have uncovered the ultimate sleeper for their first football commitment of the year.

"Marvin committed to Virginia and we're going to announce it tomorrow," said East orange (N.J.) Bishop Francis head coach Tom Cocuzza of his standout linebacker Marvin Richardson. "Now every other team will come out of the woodwork and Marvin is prepared for that."

Richardson is a 6-foot-4, 210-pound outside linebacker with 4.55-second speed in the 40-yard dash. He is also being recruited as a basketball player by some major colleges.

"He had interest from Vanderbilt, Rutgers and some others for football and other schools for basketball," Cocuzza said. "All his life he's been told he's a basketball player, but UVA loved his film. In the four tapes I saw, he had about seven or eight sacks in them. He can really run."

Richardson plays tight end on offense for Bishop Francis but is strictly a defensive propsect in college.

"He's play the SAM linebacker position," Cocuzza said. "For what Virginia does on defense, he's perfect. He's a great athlete and runs the 100-meter hurdles in track and the 4 x 100 as well."

Cocuzza was unsure of Richardson's defensive or offensive statistics from his junior season, mainly because he wasn't the coach at Bishop Francis last year.

"The things I've seen on film on Marvin -- I can understand why a big-time program like Virginia would step up and offer him. He's a bit raw right now, but you can see he has a chance to be a very good player in college. I've already heard from two schools who want to get involved now and I expect many others soon. But he's solidly committed to Virginia."