Mark Richt knows all about the expectations that come with being Miami's new head coach.

But he is trying to tamp those down, at least in the short term. During a 30-minute interview with four Miami beat reporters on Thursday, he said:

"I personally think, we’ve got a long way to go. Not in a negative way. Only thing I’m going to predict is we’re going to work really hard, and try to earn the right to win games. That’s the only thing I’m going to promise right now."

Since he was hired Dec. 4, Richt has been hard at work, not only recruiting but getting to know his players. He doesn't want to attend the Hyundai Sun Bowl on Dec. 26, because he wants to allow interim coach Larry Scott to finish the job he started without any distractions.

"I don’t even know what I would do there," Richt said. "I’m not going to try to get there and do any game management. They’ve been managing games for five games ... I think they’re on a good track."

Richt also has been working to put together a staff, though no official announcements have been made. His son, Jon, could be joining him, but Richt was not ready to reveal that just yet. And there also has been some house hunting, a feat Richt is trying to navigate on his own while his wife finishes up nursing school in Athens, Georgia.

Once January rolls around, though, it will be full steam ahead on his team, with his focus and his vision.

"We're going to work hard. Everything we're going to ask them to do is to benefit them," Richt said. "Academically, athletically, socially. If they choose to grow spiritually, that's up to them. ... But I want to help them become great at what they want to be great at, and that's football and that's to get a degree and to be a full-grown man when they get out of here, who is responsible enough to take care of themselves and the people in their lives in the future."