University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Jalen Richard: Journey To The Top
1/22/2016 12:00:00 AM | Football
HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- Throughout the years, Southern Miss football has produced a plethora of special players. Each student-athlete with his own unique story. Jalen Richard's journey to the top was filled with devastating lows, before finishing on the ultimate high.
Richard signed with Southern Miss following the Golden Eagles' 2011 Conference USA Championship. He committed to the school based on its winning tradition. He came to Hattiesburg to play football. He came to Hattiesburg to win games. He came to Hattiesburg to win championships. However, that was not what Richard was a part of initially.
"I was expecting to win because that is what Southern Miss is all about," said Richard. "That is what Southern Miss has done in the past and prove itself to be; having a winning tradition; a winning football program. I was expecting all of those things, but it didn't quite work out that way."
The 2012 team finished the season 0-12. The team battled injuries; battled heartbreak; and, for the first time in years of Southern Miss football, battled failure. The following season, the losing streak extended to the final game of the regular season.
With nothing to play for except Golden Eagle pride, head coach Todd Monken and a team led primarily by underclassmen took to historic Legion Field in Birmingham, Ala. The team fell behind 21-13 at halftime, but then Southern Miss responded. The Golden Eagles scored 28 points in the third quarter -- more points than the team had scored in an entire game that season -- rallying to post a 62-27 victory to break the dreaded streak.
Everyone was elated. Everyone was happy. Everyone was celebrating. Missing from the sideline celebration? Richard.
The then sophomore was injured in the previous game and had to miss the 2013 season finale. Two seasons with the team and Richard had yet to experience playing in a victory.
"Everything happens for a reason," said Richard. "I am a very deep believer in that. I just stayed in prayer. It was a very blessed situation. A very humbling situation to go through that because not too many people go through a year of not winning a game of football to the next year when your team wins that you're not there. Two years of college football and you haven't won a game yet. I felt in my heart that my time would come to experience that in college."
The 2014 season saw improvement. The one win turned into three wins, however, for Richard his first collegiate win did not happen until midway through his junior season. Southern Miss defeated Alcorn State in the home opener and Appalachian State just two weeks later, however, Richard was once again sidelined with an injury.
On Oct. 18, 2014, the Golden Eagles squared off against the Mean Green in Denton, Texas. A healthy Richard notched just 33 yards on seven carries, but that was not the storyline. Southern Miss outscored North Texas 17-7 in the second half to record a 30-20 victory - the first of Richard's career.
"I ended up getting my first college win my junior year playing against North Texas, coming off of another injury," said Richard. "It was a great feeling."
Heading into the 2015 campaign, energy was high. Hopes even higher.
"Going into camp and leaving out of it, I just knew that we would shock some people. In the back of our minds, we knew that we had that kind of ability. We knew that this was going to happen this year."
After a competitive 34-16 loss in front of a sold out stadium at home against Mississippi State, the Golden Eagles posted an impressive 52-6 victory over Austin Peay. The team moved to above .500 for the first time in four years with a 56-50 road win at Texas State. Southern Miss then split the next two games, defeating North Texas, 49-14, before falling to Marshall, 31-10, on the road to move to 3-3, matching the previous year's win total.
From that point, the Golden Eagles rounded the corner on their journey to the top, relying heavily on the senior from Alexandria, La.
The Black and Gold posted a 32-10 victory over UTSA during homecoming. They followed that performance with a 44-10 win at Charlotte. The momentum continued to roll into the bye week as Southern Miss notched a 34-13 victory on Halloween over UTEP. Following the bye, the Golden Eagles continued to soar, taking out Conference USA power Rice, 65-10, in Houston.
Southern Miss closed out the home slate of the schedule with a 56-31 win against Old Dominion on Senior Day. The following week, the Golden Eagles won the Conference USA West Division Title with a 58-24 road win at Louisiana Tech.
The Golden Eagles then played WKU for the Conference USA Championship before playing Pac-12 foe Washington in the Zaxby's Heart of Dallas Bowl -- the first bowl appearance for the Golden Eagles in four years.
After participating in just one win in his first three seasons, Richard helped the Golden Eagles to nine victories as a senior -- playing in every one of the team's triumphs.
Richard rushed for just 391 total yards in his first three seasons combined, but erupted for 1,098 yards on the ground in his final year with 14 rushing touchdowns. Richard added 284 yards receiving with a pair of scores, while adding a TD on a 95-yard kickoff return. He posted five 100-yard games, including three consecutive during the team's six-game winning streak.
For his efforts on the field, Richard was named First Team All-Conference USA.
"We play for Hattiesburg. We play for USM. To give back to that community the way that we do with the season we did, it is a great feeling," added Richard. "That is what got me here, the family atmosphere."
This senior suffered defeat; watched teammates go elsewhere; survived coaching changes; and persevered through it all to help move Southern Miss to its rightful position back... to the top!
