I told myself, I would never post anything about college football, let alone Georgia football, but I felt like I had to share my own Mark Richt story.  I have never met Mark Richt, but I clearly remember the first time I saw him on campus at the University of Georgia.

It was back in early 2001, and I was waiting in line at a blood drive to donate blood.  And suddenly I heard a couple of guys say, “There’s the new football coach.” I’ll never forget what he was wearing: a sweat suit with Nike sneakers.  This young 40 year old dude looked more like a college athlete instead of a coach.

Mark Richt had not even coached a game yet but was showing up already at events like this to show how much he cares about people.  I don’t know if he actually donated blood, but that moment was really poignant especially given the impact he had on the University and and the city of Athens.

It’s hard to believe how fast fifteen years can pass.  In the middle of Mark Richt’s tenure at Georgia, I managed to fit a European language in my head, travel the world, and become a doctor.  And in the middle of all of this and all the places I have seen, I never forgot that Athens, Georgia was my home.

I’m glad that Mark Richt was the coach of our football team all these years and wish him nothing but the best in his future endeavors.  At the same time, I’m looking forward to seeing who the new UGA football coach will be.  He’s going to have some pretty big shoes to fill.