Live Oak’s Luke Richey was league MVP in lacrosse and league Defensive Player of the Year in football. With opportunities beckoning in both, Richey chose to continue in football and selected San Jose State over other interested colleges. The Spartans are coming off a Mountain West tri-championship shared last season with Boise State and UNLV, and a berth in the Hawaii Bowl.
At 6-foot-3, 210 pounds, Richey provides a big, physical presence at the edge rusher position, a role which is a mix of outside linebacker and defensive end. He has been a big force in Live Oak’s fortunes the last three years. During that span, the Acorns have a 25-7 record, with a superb 14-2 mark in the Blossom Valley Athletic League’s Mt. Hamilton Division, the top division of the BVAL.
Live Oak won the 2023 championship with a 28-24 come-from-behind win at rival Christopher, shared a 2022 title with the Cougars and Lincoln, and finished second in 2021. In all three years, the Acorns advanced into the Central Coast Section playoffs.
“Luke is a tall, fast, physical defensive end that is hard to block for four quarters,” Live Oak coach Mike Gemo said. “He is a true team leader who gave everything he had day in and day out. Luke is a player that coaches love to coach and players love to follow.”
Richey played four years of both football and lacrosse and was a two-year captain for both.
In 2023 on the gridiron, he racked up 95 tackles with 10 sacks and, in addition to the BVAL Defensive Player of the Year award, was named by 247 sports as one of the Top 250 Edge Rushers nationally.
He also was an All Bay-Area defensive lineman and was selected to play in the postseason Wedemeyer All-Star game, where he had two sacks. In 2022, he was first team All-League and was Live Oak’s defensive lineman of the year.
“Luke made so many plays for us over the years but the thing I remember most is the constant pressure he put on the opposing quarterbacks,” Gemo said. “He always seemed to come up with the big sack when we needed it.”
Everyone at Live Oak cites last fall’s winner-take-all showdown at Christopher as a highlight of their career. The Cougars rocketed out to a 21-0 lead but the Acorns battled back and won 28-24 by holding off two late Christopher drives. Richey pulled in a key 17-yard pass on the winning scoring drive. His career features many big plays.
“One of my favorite memories was my junior year against Leland,” Richey said. “We were neck-to-neck all game and I picked up a fumble and returned it for six for a 70-yard return. We won 14-13. My game against Leland this year [senior year] I had two touchdowns and two sacks. Also, this past season in our playoff game against Menlo, I had three sacks. One was a strip sack and I had multiple tackles for loss.”
Richey enjoyed lacrosse and played midfield for the Acorns’ 8-0 BVAL champion team that reached the CCS semifinals. He scored 29 goals and added eight assists, third on the team in both scoring categories.
But Richey’s love for football was stronger. He said that football “just spoke to me better.”
“My last season at Live Oak was my favorite because we had such a strong brotherhood that we developed throughout the season,” Richey said. “It was at the point where we weren’t just playing football but we were playing for each other. I would say our highlight as a team was beating Christopher High because we barely fell short to them my junior year. Not only did we beat Christopher but it was for the Mt. Hamilton league championship title.”
The edge rusher position requires a blend of film study and mental work along with pure physicality. Video, with coaching, gives a player knowledge of what the other team is doing, especially based on how they set up at the line of scrimmage. It also provides insight into the techniques and tendencies of specific opponent players and teams.
Physical strength, especially weight training, is crucial to fending off blockers and making tackles. Concurrently, speed is needed to move quickly to a ball carrier or to get past a blocker. Richey works on the weights six days a week and is looking to add 15-20 pounds of muscle for the upcoming college season.
“There’s so much versatility at the outside linebacker position,” Richey said. “Walking up and being a part of the front line like a defensive end for a pass rush and doing stunts with the defensive line.”
Parents Paul and Laura were athletes in the pool, with his father in water polo and his mother in swimming. As a youngster, Luke played many sports, finally getting into tackle football as a high school freshman.
Richey cites his parents for helping him and being supportive, traveling with him to games and attending nearly all. As a college freshman at San Jose State now, Richey is also eager to cite the Live Oak coaches that helped him develop.
Richey named JV coaches John Bennett, Dave Knopf and Brian Pinkham for teaching him fundamental skills. He complimented the varsity staff of coach Gemo, offensive coordinator Nick Hagiperos, defensive coordinator Mark Dean and defensive line coach Ryan Peery.
Richey passed up opportunities in lacrosse and is now fully focused on football. He cited the coaching staff at San Jose State and their welcoming nature as being most key in his decision to join the Spartans over other suitors. At San Jose State, his position coach is Josh Irvin.
“Coach Irvin has already taught me so much and he is in the process of building me into the player he sees in me,” Richey said. “Our team is led by head coach, coach Ken (Niumatalolo), and he has years of experience as a head coach.”
Richey and the Spartans are busy with fall camp. The season opener is on Aug. 29 at home against Sacramento State.
“We go from sunrise to sunset six days a week,” Richey said. “I love everything about what we do and I’m excited for more.”
