Richardson's work ethic doesn't come from a narcissistic quest to win individual awards and accolades.
It comes from a burning desire to escape what he and his family left behind.
More than anything else, Richardson said he is determined that his two young daughters won't endure the same daily struggles he had while growing up with in a housing project in Pensacola, Fla.
The girls' mother, Sevina Fatu, was a longtime girlfriend of Richardson's in Pensacola. Sevina Fatu is from a family of famous Samoan-American professional wrestlers. Her uncle, Edward "Eki" Fatu, was known by his ring name Umaga and was a two-time World Wrestling Entertainment intercontinental champion. Several other family members were wrestlers, including her cousins, Jonathan and Joshua Fatu, who still wrestle under the ring names Jimmy and Jey Uso.
Kartina Richardson (Trent's mother) had three biological sons, and he also had three adopted brothers.
One of Richardson's adopted brothers, Zan Carter, lives with him and attends high school in Tuscaloosa. When Richardson's younger brother started to stray last summer, Richardson agreed to take him in.
"I moved him down here and he got his grades right," Richardson said. "He's on track now. He's made me proud. I'm like a proud father."
Richardson, who has a 3.26 GPA in business, said sports were about the only way to escape Warrington Village. One of his older brothers, Terrell, played defensive end at Louisiana-Lafayette from 2007 to 2010.
"Me and my brother were probably the first people to make it out of there and go to college," Richardson said.
Former Dallas Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith, who also grew up in a housing project in Pensacola, has become a mentor to Richardson over the past few years.
"He is a cool guy," Richardson said. "We chat sometimes. He tells me I'm doing well and to stay humble. He tells me not to let people get in my ear. He tells me to stay out of trouble."
Former boxing champion Roy Jones Jr., another Pensacola native, also has mentored Richardson. Jones has attended a handful of Richardson's games at Alabama.
"He's like a big brother to me," Richardson said.
