Rishard Dames
Cornerback / FIU
Alex Khvatov: What are your measurements (height, weight and forty time)?
Rishard Dames: I am 5’11, 175.
Alex Khvatov: Tell us about having a twin brother.
Rishard Dames: It’s pretty fun. It is like seeing yourself. We always know what we are about to do. Richard was born three minutes before me. He is my older brother.
Alex Khvatov: Your twin brother, Richard Dames, plays DB at FIU as well. What is it like playing on the same college team?
Rishard Dames: It’s fun. Sometimes it gets tricky and intense. We don’t get mad at each other. On the field, it’s exciting when he is back there when I am at nickel or corner.
Alex Khvatov: How did you prepare for the 2020 season with no offseason training?
Rishard Dames: We stayed in Miami. We trained and ran on my old high school field. We lifted every other day. We ran on the track.
Alex Khvatov: Besides football, what other sports did you play in high school?
Rishard Dames: My brother and I practiced with the track team.
Alex Khvatov: What positions did you play in high school?
Rishard Dames: I only played during my 11th and 12th grade years. The first six games of my junior year, I played receiver. Then I switched to corner and stayed there.
Alex Khvatov: Coming out of high school, what programs showed interest in you?
Rishard Dames: I was born and raised in Miami, FL. I had about six or seven offers, and my brother Richard had about 10 offers. We always wanted to play with each other in college. We had FAU, Charlotte, FIU, Toledo and Arkansas State.
Alex Khvatov: Why did you choose FIU?
Rishard Dames: At the end, it came down to FAU and FIU. FAU just got Lane Kiffin. Butch Davis and the coaching staff were showing me more love. They also had Maurice Alexander and Darrius Scott who decided to go there.
Alex Khvatov: Describe your overall career.
Rishard Dames: Freshman year, I knew that I would redshirt. I saw my brother Richard play. He stepped on the field. Redshirt freshman year, I got a couple of reps. I played behind Richard on special teams. Sometimes, I played on punt returns. We had a lot of experience at corner. Last year, they put me at nickel. I was second string at first. I had to get in the weight room and get stronger. Against Tulane, I didn’t play that much. At Western Kentucky, I asked the coach to put me in. I had an 80-yard INT for the TD. I started the rest of the year as a nickel. When Isiah or Stantley were tired, I would go to the outside.
Alex Khvatov: What can we expect from your team this upcoming season?
Rishard Dames: I plan to switch from nickel to the outside this season. We will have that dog mentality. We have a big chip on our shoulders. We should win the C-USA this year and go to a big bowl game.
Alex Khvatov: What are your strengths?
Rishard Dames: Man to man coverage. I am good at press coverage.
Alex Khvatov: What areas of your game are you trying to improve upon?
Rishard Dames: I am trying to get better in off man coverage and gain about 10 more pounds. I also need to make more solo tackles.
Alex Khvatov: What have you learned from your former teammates CB Ike Brown and CB Stantley Thomas-Oliver?
Rishard Dames: How to keep my composure and how to deal with the ups and downs. Stantley is actually my distant cousin. I didn’t know that in the beginning. We were close.
Alex Khvatov: What is the highlight of your career up to this point?
Rishard Dames: The Miami game when we beat them. We had three INT’s. It was our best game. I had one interception.
Alex Khvatov: What is it like to play for your head coach Butch Davis?
Rishard Dames: It’s exciting. Seeing all of the media come out and talk to him. He is very strict, but he can be fun at times. He loves when you work hard.
Alex Khvatov: What is the biggest lesson that you have taken away from your coaching staff?
Rishard Dames: How to deal with the ups and downs. We had a lot of change with positional coaches here. Follow through with a lot of stuff.
Alex Khvatov: Tell us about overcoming some hardships in life. How have they made you a stronger individual?
Rishard Dames: They made me and Richard come together with everything we have been through. Our dad passed away. Every game, we are still imagining that he is still in the stands watching us.
Alex Khvatov: What is your favorite NFL team?
Rishard Dames: The Patriots. My cousin, J.C. Jackson is on the Patriots.
Alex Khvatov: Who is your favorite NFL player?
Rishard Dames: I like to watch Quinton Dunbar, Richard Sherman and Tom Brady.
Alex Khvatov: What players on your team should we keep an eye on for this upcoming season?
Rishard Dames: My brother safety Richard Dames and S Dorian Hall. WR Shemar Thornton is another player to keep an eye on, even though he ruptured his Achilles two weeks ago. WR Bryce Singleton, WR Jeremiah Holloman and CB Jamal Anderson will play a lot more this year. CB Josh Turner will be a starter and will be on the other side of me. OL Mershawn Miller might play center this year. OL Lyndell Hudson, DE Alexy Jean-Baptiste, DE Chris Whittaker, LB Tyson Maeva and LB Jamal Gates.
Alex Khvatov: Who is the best player that you have faced on an opposing team?
Rishard Dames: I got to go with WR Tyre Brady from Marshall.
Alex Khvatov: What is the most important trait for a CB?
Rishard Dames: Keeping your composure. You will get beat, but you have to move on to the next play. Don’t dwell on the play before.
Alex Khvatov: What do you enjoy most about football?
Rishard Dames: I like the action. I have been playing the game for 15 years. It is the thrill that excites me.
Alex Khvatov: What are your hobbies?
Rishard Dames: I play video games. I like to go and shoot some hoops. I like to hang out with family.
Alex Khvatov: What do you want to do with your life after your football career is over?
Rishard Dames: My major is in criminal justice. I was thinking about becoming a lawyer or a police officer.
Alex Khvatov: What five words best describe you?
Rishard Dames: Caring, funny, charismatic, motivated, and friendly.
