If you only know Richard Sherman as a shutdown cornerback for the Seahawks on the field and a loudmouth off the field, there’s a lot about him you don’t know.
Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times has a good piece exploring Sherman’s family, and the parents who instilled his work ethic. Sherman’s father drives a trash truck and his mother works with disabled children, and Sherman said the example they set through their own hard work is a big part of who he is.
“I think it was incredibly significant,” Sherman said. “It forced my brother and me to understand priorities and family. You’ve got to do everything in your power to make sure your family is taken care of.”
Kevin Sherman, Richard’s father, is going to the Super Bowl. But he’ll fly back to Southern California on Monday and be back at work early Tuesday morning, and he says he has no intention of giving up the garbage duties just because his son has a high-paying job.
“People say, ‘Let your son take care of you,’” Kevin Sherman said. “Yeah, but I’ve got a few years left until I retire. Why would I mess up my own retirement? Why should my son have to foot everything? I have a medical plan that will cover me. Why should my son have to pay my medical bills? It doesn’t make sense to me.”
Sherman may be best known for his tirade after the NFC Championship Game. But Sherman never would have been in that position without a lot of hard work. And when it comes to hard work, his parents showed him the way.