HUNTSVILLE, Alabama — It may have brought his most elusive moves of the season, there in the wee morning hours when the state’s best football player proved he was no less resistant than the rest of us to Midnight-Madness, Door-Busting, Black-Friday shopping insanity.
Alabama’s Trent Richardson
Trent Richardson was in the Hampton Cove Walmart early that Friday morning. Once he was recognized – it didn’t take long, even without his No. 3 Alabama football jersey – the store employees did a nice job as a de facto offensive line, letting him and some cousins and friends meander the aisles reasonably unimpeded.
“He still hasn’t gotten ahold of the fact he’s a big star,” said his uncle, Jeremiah Knight. “And we don’t realize it until we go somewhere with him.”
If you’re concerned about his keeping such late hours with Iron Bowl kickoff less than 40 hours away, remember that Richardson, the Crimson Tide tailback, merely rushed for a season-high 203 yards against Auburn, his closing argument in the Heisman Trophy contest.
Richardson’s extended family, spread across the Southeast, including Huntsville, Atlanta and his Pensacola, Fla., home, traditionally gets together on Thanksgiving. That brought some 42 people to the home of Jeremiah and Gloria Knight in Hampton Cove.
It was all low-key – as low-key as that many people in one house might be – and with Richardson not only allowed but encouraged to embrace a sense of normalcy.
“When he’s around family, we see him as just Trent,” Knight said. “We’re proud of him. But he gets in and he horses around with his cousins, they tell stories, they joke about things, they’re completely at home.”
Despite requests from outsiders, the family resists bringing items for him to sign, trying to provide some sanctuary from the madness. Knight even realized this week, after taking countless photos of Richardson with other people’s cameras, he didn’t have a picture of himself with Richardson anywhere on his phone.
Here’s how this particular little branch of the family tree goes: Knight’s sister Gloria had two boys and a girl. The daughter is Katrina, who is Trent’s mother. Katrina raised Trent and his two brothers primarily on her own.
Knight plans to be in New York, along with his wife, sister and others, next Saturday when the Heisman Trophy is awarded. Next Saturday is also grandmother Gloria’s birthday.
So what can an uncle share about his famous nephew that maybe we haven’t already learned?
First, he’s a jokester. Knight never has seen him angry. Richardson consistently addresses his elders as “sir” and “ma’am.” He loves Japanese steak houses.
He has tattoos on each arm, one a picture of his mother, the other a picture of his grandmother. He’ll scribble onto his sweatbands the names of other relatives who are especially on his mind as a game approaches.
“I think more people are finding out he’s a down-to-earth guy,” Knight said. “He grew up under some really tough conditions. What I find about him is he has a character where is really is a well-mannered individual, and he has a strong amount of credibility and respect for people. He’s polite. He’s approachable.”
On a week of disheartening news about former Alabama player Rolando McClain, there are no such concerns about Richardson.
“I would pray as he becomes more and more popular, he won’t forget where he came from. And I don’t think he will,” Knight said. “He will stay grounded. He will not disappoint us in terms of character. He has such a strong Christian background in his upbringing, he better not get out of line.”
Knight paused, then softly offered a fake menacing chuckle, saying, “We will straighten him out. Very quickly.”
Contact Mark McCarter at mark.mccarter@htimes.com and follow him on Twitter @markmccarter
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