Architecture, Academics, Football: The Story of Aaron Richard '26

By Craig Sachson
PrincetonTigersFootball.com

Palmer Stadium was synonymous with Princeton football for generations. It was home to Heisman Trophy winner Dick Kazmaier '52, College Football Hall of Famer Cosmo Iacavazzi '65, and Bob Surace '90 — an All-Ivy center who returned home to guide his alma mater to four Ivy League titles.

Aaron Richard never saw any of them play. In fact, he wasn't even alive when the stadium still stood on Princeton's campus. Yet he has developed a soft spot for the historic venue.

"I really like Palmer Stadium and how it connected with the collegiate Gothic architecture of the campus," Richard said. "I feel like Princeton Stadium embodies collegiate athletics. It carries forward Palmer's tradition with the columns on the exterior, symbolizing how Princeton is the foundation of American football as the home of the first team. But inside, the stadium was able to evolve. It's symbolic of Princeton University and Princeton Athletics, and how both continue to grow over time."

You might not be surprised to learn that Richard is an architecture major.

A young man who once fashioned miniature stadiums out of his father's old VHS tapes now spends his time sketching out elaborate future venues he dreams of one day designing. But Richard is a builder in other ways, too. On campus, he has dedicated himself to building connections, creating opportunities for Black student-athletes, and — here in his cherished Princeton Stadium — helping to build a defense capable of bringing the Tigers a fifth Ivy League title in the last 12 years.

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Richard excelled in both academics and athletics while living in Gadsden, Alabama, but he didn't think of connecting the two throughout much of his childhood. That job belonged to his older brother Joshua, who played football at Jacksonville State and pushed Aaron to pursue the recruiting process.

The younger Richard valued a top education, which led him to a football camp at Vanderbilt. Princeton coaches saw him there and followed his development closely. He didn't know a lot about Princeton or New Jersey at first, but he quickly realized it could become a perfect fit.

"If I'm not being challenged academically, I get kind of bored," Richard said. "I really wanted some rigor to push me intellectually because I didn't want to fall into a trap of going somewhere to just play ball. I wanted to have an academic foundation to set me up post-grad. Going to a school that prioritized academics was huge for me. I also wanted to be able to choose my own major because I had an obsession with architecture, and not many schools offered that."

As fate would have it, the top-ranked undergraduate university had architecture as a major, and it also had an interest in physically dominant defensive linemen. Richard came to Princeton at an awkward time, as the COVID pandemic left a locker room loaded with fifth- and sixth-year seniors who were dominating playing time. The coaches temporarily moved him to a rush linebacker position to see if he could make an early impact, but by the spring he was back to a more comfortable role as outside lineman.

Richard was in awe of guys like Cole Aubrey and Matthew Jester early in his career, but he quickly realized that feeling was holding him back.

"That spring was big for me because I had to play with confidence and stop having reverence for whoever was in front of me," Richard said. "I had to get back to playing fast."

Richard's new energy earned him playing time as a sophomore, and by last season he was a regular in the defensive line rotation. As satisfying as the playing time was, the results left much to be desired. His classmates felt it too, and there has been a collective will to make sure this season would be far different.

"I feel like this is the closest our team has been as brothers since I've been here," Richard said. "The captains are doing a great job, but I think you're seeing everybody step into a leadership role. Some guys are more vocal, like myself. I help bring some juice. Some guys are calmer and help us keep poise. Everybody is playing their role."

Leadership is important to Richard, because he experienced its value on campus. As a freshman football player, he needed mentors both inside and outside the locker room. With all the seniors, there was no shortage of them in football. He found the outside ones in the Black Student-Athlete Collective (BSAC), a campus initiative that he now leads as co-president.

"The Black Student-Athlete Collective was very helpful in my transition here," Richard said. "There were people who could understand some of the things I grew up experiencing, some of my background, some of the cultural things I do. It can be as simple as liking soul food and having fellowship, or just having something in common. As co-president, I just try my best to just create opportunities."

Relationships across campus are important to Richard, but his faith is most important. It changed his mindset this season, and he believes it has allowed him to play with a new focus.

"It's given me so much more strength, so much more power, resilience, and poise," he said. "I don't have to do all the performative yelling and screaming, the vulgar stuff. I know where my strength come from. And when I line up on the field, I don't have reverence for anybody in front of me. I only have reverence for the Lord."

His new focus, combined with years of work and playing experience, have put Richard in a position to excel this season. The Princeton defense is coming off its best performance of the season, when it shut out Columbia for the final three quarters of a 17-10 comeback win last Friday night.

"Aaron is one of the toughest and most disciplined players on the field and most creative off of it," Surace said. "For a few hours every day, he is all about high energy and all-out effort. Then there are numerous times I walk into a meeting room or the locker room and he's drawn these amazing structures. It looks like he spent days on it, and I'll ask him and he says it took 20 minutes."

Richard pours himself into his passions, whether its building stadiums, relationships, or a fearless defensive lineman ready to do whatever it takes to lead Princeton to a standout final season. He has been successful at every stop, and there is no reason to suspect anything else moving forward.

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