Richard Tardits is a former American football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

 linebacker

Linebacker

A linebacker is a position in American football that was invented by football coach Fielding H. Yost of the University of Michigan. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up approximately three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage, behind the defensive linemen...

 for the New England Patriots

New England Patriots

The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...

 of the National Football League

National Football League

The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...

. He held the record for most sacks

Quarterback sack

In American football and Canadian football, a sack occurs when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage before he can throw a forward pass, or when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage in the "pocket" and the intent of what he was going to do is unclear...

 in a career at the University of Georgia

University of Georgia

The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...

, until surpassed by David Pollack in 2004, and he was referred to as 'Le Sack' by fans because of his French birth.

During his NFL career, he also helped the Mystic River Rugby Club

Mystic River Rugby Club

The Mystic River Rugby Club is a New England Rugby Football Union club, founded in 1974, located in Malden, Massachusetts and Melrose, Massachusetts, who play Division 1 Rugby Union in the United States....

 reach the national finals. He later represented the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 in rugby

Rugby union

Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...

.

NFL career

Phoenix Cardinals

• 1989: 5th round Draft pick (123rd overall)

New England Patriots

New England Patriots

The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...

• 1990: 2 G, 1 GS
• 1991: 16 G, 1FR
• 1992: 9 G

Career Totals: 27 Games, 1 Game Start, 1 Fumble Recovery

Rugby Career (USA Eagles)

Rugby World Cup

Rugby World Cup

The Rugby World Cup is an international rugby union competition organised by the International Rugby Board and held every four years since 1987....

• 1999 (1 +1 Game)

Rugby World Cup Qualifiers

• 1994-1996 (3 Games, 1 Try)

Pacific Rim Championship

• 1996-1997 (3 Games)
• 1997-1998 (1 Game)
• 1998-1999 (5 Games)

Pan-American Championship

• 1996-1997 (1 Game)

Friendlies

• 02/10/1993 v Australia
• 12/03/1994 v Bermuda (1 Try)
• 21/05/1994 v Canada
• 05/11/1994 v Ireland
• 06/01/1996 v Ireland (1 Try)
• 11/01/1997 v Wales
• 12/04/1998 v Spain (Sub)
• 25/07/1998 v Fiji (Sub)

Other Club Affiliations:

• French National Team (under 21)
• Biarritz Olympique
  Biarritz Olympique
  Biarritz Olympique Pays Basque is a French professional rugby union team based in the Basque city of Biarritz, Aquitaine which competes in the Top 14 and the Heineken Cup...
  
   (France)
• Mystic River Rugby Club
  Mystic River Rugby Club
  The Mystic River Rugby Club is a New England Rugby Football Union club, founded in 1974, located in Malden, Massachusetts and Melrose, Massachusetts, who play Division 1 Rugby Union in the United States....
  
   (USA)