ATHENS --- Mark Richt said the decision to put his Lake Hartwell home up for sale was inspired by a Christian book he read and should not be viewed as concern over his job security as Georgia's football coach.
The eight-bedroom, eight-bath house was placed on sale on May 17 and was listed on Lake Hartwell real estate websites for $1.99 million. Richt had the home built in 2009, about the time his oldest son Jon Richt signed a football scholarship with nearby Clemson University. Jon Richt has since transferred to Mars Hill College.
Richt said he and wife Katharyn decided to place the property on the market last year after he read "The Hole in Our Gospel, " by World Vision president Richard Stearns. The couple subsequently decided to downsize so that they may give more of their time and money to charities.
"There was a lot of statistical data in there about the amount of people that live on a dollar a day around this world. Billions of people, " Richt said Wednesday. "So I'm reading this book, and it really affected me. It helped me realize that what we have is way more than we need and that our ability to give is hindered by this property.
"We just wanted to be in a better position to give and bless people that don't have anything. We felt like this was one way to be able to do that."
Predictably, bloggers and chatter on fan forums insinuated that Richt's decision to sell off property was a precaution in the event that he is fired as UGA's head coach.
Richt is entering his 11th season with the Bulldogs and owns a 96-34 career record. But the Bulldogs are coming off a 6-7 season, their first losing record under Richt's leadership.
"I figured that would be the way some people reacted to it, " Richt said. "But it has absolutely nothing to do with football. It has to do with my wife's desire and my desire to give. I was actually compelled to do this much earlier. I made the decision to do it a while ago, but I didn't want to do it during the season or during recruiting because I knew it would be blown out of proportion. But it's been on my heart for a long time, so we're just going ahead and doing it."
Richt's contract runs through the 2013 season and pays him about $3 million a year. He has earned more than $25 million in salary and benefits since becoming Georgia's coach in 2001.
Richt said he and his family are planning a trip to Honduras this summer where they will observe and assist in the building of several water wells. He said he hopes that other people will read "The Hole in Our Gospel" and be moved to action like he was.
"It's a very compelling book, compelling enough for me to say, 'You know what? I don't want to pour money into a home like that when I can use it for better things, for eternal things, '" he said. "If this situation gets people to read this book and gets people more interested in helping the poor, then I'm happy about it."
