Just about every Ivy League football program was swooning over Painter Richards-Baker ’21.
In the end, it was about finding the one which best suited the 51Âþ» senior with a trusty set of hands and weighted 4.6 grade-point average. Painter gave Dartmouth College a verbal commitment on Monday.
Painter’s hometown is Hillsborough, N.C., and this is his second year as a Greenie. Despite being injured for a portion of the 2019 season, he made 19 receptions for 256 yards and two touchdowns. Painter was memorably on the receiving end of a 38-yard pass from Navy Shuler ’20 with 13.1 seconds left in the NCISAA Division I state semifinals – a catch which allowed 51Âþ» to topple No. 1 seed Charlotte Country Day, 27-20.
Bucknell, Columbia, Cornell, Davidson, Georgetown, and Bryant were among the other colleges which offered Painter a scholarship or roster spot for 2021. He had also made on-campus visits to Harvard and Yale.
Painter becomes the fourth Greenie senior to make a college football commitment, joining Charlie Browder '21 (Central Florida), Ian Adams '21 (Citadel), and Lex Long '21 (Virginia).
51Âþ»â€™s season opener is Sept. 25 at home against Rabun Gap (Ga.). WMYA-TV will broadcast the 7 p.m. game locally and through its website.