Riyahd Richardson, the 5-foot-8, 165-pound two-star cornerback from Byrnes High School in Duncan, S.C., still claims only one verbal scholarship offer from Texas A&M.
He said he now favors the Aggies slightly over Penn State, Notre Dame and Colorado. "A&M has already offered," Richardson said. "I talked with (defensive back) coach Charles McMillan a few months ago and told me that I have an offer."
Richardson has already visited the Aggies and says he liked what he saw. "They have great facilities and the campus is nice. The people there are super friendly and it's a really nice and clean place."
During the summer Richardson attended camps at Florida, Clemson and North Carolina State.
"I want to go to a nice atmosphere and where I feel at home," he said. "I'd like a program with a good winning tradition too."
Richardson said he followed local favorite South Carolina as a youngster, but the Gamecocks are not recruiting him. "I haven't really heard from them," Richardson said. "I love the atmosphere at South Carolina, especially during game day."
Despite only having one verbal offer, Richardson is confident he'll get more. "Notre Dame really likes me," he said. "They just said that I need to improve my grades."
Richardson reports a 2.0 core GPA and an 860 SAT. "They told me I'd have to get something like a 960 and get my GPA up," he said. "I had a 1.8 last year and have been improving. I know what I need to get and I think I'll make it."
He hopes to visit the Irish during the season. "I love their tradition and it's a very prestigious program," he said.
Another school Richardson thinks he'll likely visit is Penn State. "I actually don't really know too much about them yet," he said. "I'd like to visit them and see what they are like."
With an improved core GPA, Richardson believes Colorado will offer as well. "They seem to like me a lot too," he said. "They send a lot of mail. They just sent me a letter asking me to call them. I plan to do that this week. They just started recruiting me a few weeks ago."
Richardson finished his junior season with 89 tackles and six interceptions (two for touchdowns). He helped lead his team to the 4A state championship and a perfect 15-0 record.
"I can jam," he said. "I like to jam the wide receiver and get really physical. I'm aggressive and play smart. I'm always watching the quarterbacks eyes."
Richardson says he wants to improve his backpeddle and hips.
Ranked as Scout.com's No. 158 cornerback, Richardson says he can bench 250-pounds, squat 380 and vertical jump 35-inches.
Byrnes High School opens their season on Aug. 21 against Independence.