Sport: Football
Born: May 31, 1953
Town: Elizabeth, New Jersey
Richard Marlon Wood was born May 31, 1953 in Elizabeth, NJ. He was the younger brother of Jake Wood, who was signed by the Detroit Tigers while Richard was still in grade school. Jake’s calling cards were speed and aggression, and Richard took after his sibling, but made his mark on the gridiron for Thomas Jefferson High School. His football teammates included Gil Chapman, who was rated by many experts as the top high-school player in the East and went on to play tailback for Michigan. The star of the TJHS basketball team was John Shumate. Richard, a 6’2” linebacker, was the leader of the football varsity’s defense.
Richard accepted a scholarship offer from USC and won a starting spot as a sophomore in 1972 and helped the Trojans go undefeated and win the national championship. They capped their season with a 42–17 wipeout of Ohio State in the Rose Bowl. The 1973 team failed to repeat but still win the PAC 8 championship. Gary Jeter, Artimus Parker and Richard were the defensive leaders and Richard was a consensus All-American. Coach John McKay named Richard the defensive captain as a senior in 1975 and he was a consensus All-American pick for the second year in a row. USC edged Ohio State in the Rose Bowl 18–17 to earn the national title again. The Trojans lost only three games during Richard’s varsity career.
The Jets picked Richard in the third round of the 1975 NFL Draft. They traded him to the expansion Tampa Bay Buccaneers the following season, reuniting him with McKay, who had been hired to coach the team. Richard worked his way into the starting lineup in 1976 and stayed there until 1982. During that time, Tampa Bay went from being dubbed the “Yuk-aneers” to having one of the most vaunted defenses in football. Richard was often good for 10 tackles a game and ince set a team record with 18. Richard was named team captain in 1979 and led the Bucs to the NFC Championship Game, which they narrowly lost to the Rams.
In 1985, Richard signed to play with the Jacksonville Bulls of the United States Football League. He retired from football at 33 and got into coaching, including a stint as an assistant with the Buccaneers in the early 1990s, a state championship as head coach of the Paul Wharton Wildcats in Tampa, and two World Bowl appearances mentoring the D-line for the Frankfurt Galaxy of NFL Europe. In 2002, Richard performed the ceremonial coin toss in the NFC Championship Game won by the Bucs on their way to Super Bowl XXXVII.