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Richardson commits to Cal

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Finally, Jared Goff has someone to throw to. Early this week, Harbor City (Calif.) Narbonne three-star wide receiver A.J. Richardson made his decision, and on Friday, he made the formal announcement: He will be playing for California in 2013.
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"I'm going to be committed to Cal," Richardson told BearTerritory on Wednesday morning.
"He's definitely Tedford's problem now, trying to figure out how to get him the rock, I guess," laughed Gauchos offensive coordinator Tim Kaub, who had Richardson playing anywhere from tight end to slot back to wide receiver to quarterback last season. "It's a problem that I'm going to miss having."
The Bears were the sixth and final school to offer the 6-foot-1, 195-pound Richardson, who boasted offers from Duke, Hawaii, Houston, Nevada and San Diego State, but it was his visit up to Berkeley several weeks ago that helped to get the wheels turning.
"I liked the environment -- I love the environment," Richardson said. "The campus, the school, the education, and I was really impressed with how real the coaches are. They treat me like family, and I was really looking for that."
Richardson's father Arlandus Richardson played basketball at Kentucky, but it was his mother that was a big advocate for the Bears.
"My mom wanted me to go to Cal, so she was really excited about it," said Richardson.
Richardson becomes the first wide receiver to commit to Cal for the 2013 cycle, and with five receivers coming in with the 2012 signing class, he's not the least bit perturbed about competing for playing time. It doesn't hurt that he has prior relationships with many of the players in last year's class, including Raymond Ford, Bryce Treggs, Jeffrey Coprich, Jr., Kenny Lawler and Willie Fletcher.
"Competition is everywhere," Richardson said. "You're going to see competition at every school, so it doesn't faze me, going there, because I've played with them before. I know all the receivers and a couple of the DBs. I know half the people that signed this year."
Last season, Richardson went up against Ford's Gardena (Calif.) Serra and went off for 115 yards and two catches.
"I can remember, it was the second series, and he took a bubble screen to the house -- outran everybody," Kaub said. "I will say this about Raymond Ford: he was on one leg, and he was the fastest guy on the field. That dude is legit. He had that ankle problem early in the season and he was playing on one leg, and just dominated."
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