Short-term glory might be fun, but senior defensive end Morrice Richardson has eyed long-term success since the day he decided to come to Notre Dame.
The Atlanta native always dreamed of playing football in the Southeastern Conference, for a powerhouse like LSU or Georgia, but opted to come north for one reason.
"The thing that won me over about Notre Dame was the academics," Richardson said.
In letting academics determine his decision of where to play football, Richardson's time in college was not going to be gauged only by his success on the field, but also his progression in class.
"The academic aspect has been really good. I can't complain about that," he said. "I've learned a lot and met a lot of people. One day when I decide to go into the business world
I'll have a leg up coming from the number two business program in the country."
He will need a leg up to reach his goals, which are just as lofty off the field as they ever have been on the field.
"After football I want to try to work for one of the top four private consulting firms," Richardson said. "Hopefully one day, I'll be able to branch off and start my own consulting company."
Richardson said football has helped prepare himself for the elite business world.
"A lot of the things you come across in the real world I came across playing football here as well, a lot of situations you have to be strong to deal with," he said.
One of those football situations has been his scarce playing time, even through relative success on the field. Richardson has seen action in all four of his years, but has never started a game, and through his first three years with the Irish had recorded 18 tackles, including 11 in 2008.
"It has been frustrating, being able to make plays but still not getting much [playing time]," he said.
Dealing with his frustration, Richardson gained a work ethic that should attract offers from big businesses.
"Even though I haven't been playing, I still have prepared like I was playing," he said. "It is that type of position where when you get on you have to produce right away."
That preparation has carried right back to the classroom as well, where Richardson will graduate with a management-consulting degree from the Mendoza College of Business in May.
"There were some times after an accounting final — notice I keep saying accounting — we'd be walking out of Jordan Hall wanting to cry thinking, ‘What did I just do?'" he said. "It's worth it, definitely worth it."
Richardson said all the work he has put in at Notre Dame is worth it because he knows what rewards he will reap in the future.
"Some people say that college is the best time of your life and it's the time to party," he said. "I think those are the people that don't go to Notre Dame. Every day we have to struggle, but after here, when you have a degree and a job, every other day is a party."
But Richardson isn't done thinking about football. He has been coached for four years by a coach with NFL experience, and Richardson relished every lesson Charlie Weis dispensed.
"[Weis] knows what he's talking about," Richardson said. "So whenever he yelled at me it didn't really bother me. I would disregard the tone and listened to the words."
In listening to the words, Richardson's NFL dreams live on, as after listening to stories from Weis and other Irish players from the NFL, he has learned sometimes it is the player you don't expect who makes it in the next level.
"There are a lot of guys that left a college program who played every snap but didn't play any snaps at the next level," he said. "And there are a lot of guys who didn't play in college but made it in the next level."
Not that Richardson is overly concerned about making it in the NFL. He knows Notre Dame has prepared him for long-term success as well as possible short-term glory.
"Whatever is for me, I have a good degree and have a good back-up plan," he said.
