Jerry Richardson
Jerry Richardson, owner and founder of the Carolina Panthers NFL football team, is a 1959 Wofford College graduate. He held a variety of leadership positions on campus and earned All-American football honors while playing for the Wofford Terriers. For two seasons, Richardson played NFL football with the Baltimore Colts. He then co-founded Spartan Food Systems, the first franchise of Hardee's Restaurants. Richardson enjoyed a brilliant 34-year career in the food service business before stepping down as chairman and CEO of Flagstar Companies, Inc., to devote full attention to the Panthers. At the time, Flagstar was the largest publicly-held company in South Carolina, operating about 2,500 restaurants and employing more than 100,000 people. Richardson served Wofford as a trustee from 1978 to 1990, and from 1992 to 2004. He has received the Alumni Distinguished Service Award and the honorary degree of Doctor of Humanities from Wofford. Richardson and his wife, Rosalind, live in Charlotte, NC. They are the parents of three children, Jon, Mark and Ashley.
Read more about Mr. Richardson on the Carolina Panthers website.