Richard returns to St. Edmund

The Richard family and Blue Jay baseball have a great tradition together.
St. Edmund has won six baseball state championships and two runners-up trophies.
Former Blue Jay star and coach Scott Richard left his mark on the program and this week returned as head coach of the St. Edmund baseball team.
“I wanted to give back to the school that did so much for me,” Richard said of his return to St. Edmund.
“I am looking forward to the challenge and it will be fun.”
As a player, Richard and the Blue Jays won the 1980 title with a 2-0 win over Central Catholic of Morgan City.
In 1982, St. Edmund finished second to St. Frederick in a 6-5 loss in the finals.
The Blue Jays captured the 1983 championship with a 6-0 win over St. Frederick.
As a coach, Richard helped lead the Blue Jays to the 1988 title over Ascension Catholic (9-1) and again in 1991 over Ascension Catholic (8-4).
Richard and St. Edmund won their fifth state title in 1996 against St. John. He earned two state coach of the year honors.
The Blue Jays’ sixth title came in 1998 with a victory over Central Catholic of Morgan City led by head coach Tad Richard.
St. Edmund finished state runners-up in 2001 in a 2-1 loss to Oak Grove under head coach Scott Rider.
Richard said his goal for his players is to spend the summer “getting bigger, stronger and faster.”
Richard said while he doesn’t know many of the players yet, he is excited about the future of the Blue Jays.
“I want to schedule a few bigger schools and see what happens,” the coach said. “I want to challenge the kids.
“One of two things is going to happen - they are either going to sink or swim.”
Richard said it will be exciting to be back on the field.
“We are going to play the game the way it is supposed to be played.”
Richard coached 14 years at St. Edmund, and most recently as the pitching coach in 2011.
Richard replaces Ryan Henderson, who was the head coach from 2011-2014.