We finally woke up from our slumber and offered and he'll be coming to our February 28th Junior Day. It's a $ site.
I thought that our lack of early interest had allowed that ship to sail, but the family is excited that Texas got into the mix. So we're not dealing with a prideful kid who will take a "late offer" - and I'm amused that we now characterize a mid-February offer as late - as a slight. See Davis, Mike.
This is a great free story from Inside Texas and it details some of the reasons why I'm so excited by him as a prospect.
The most interesting OL to me are those that came to the position naturally after excelling athletically doing something else: playing DL, TE, power forward in basketball, or in this case, QB. Aside from the athletic ability that it suggests, they also bring a mindset to the position that's very useful to their development.
Back when John Madden used to say things that were interesting - like twenty years ago - I remember him talking about the fact that a lot of OL grew up as self-conscious oversized fat kids who are naturally passive. They have been told all of their lives not to retaliate against little aggressive kids who start fights with them. You have to coax them into tapping into their aggression, and many never do.
So often the best OL are the ones who sprouted late after acquiring athletic skills doing other things - they're quite comfortable asserting themselves and they'll mash that little aggressive kid into the dirt without any encouragement. They're also less prone to self-pity and sloth.
Marry a demonstrated baseline of athletic ability to a growing frame and combine it with elite level technique imparted by a NFL Hall Of Fame legend and one of the best football family pedigrees in history and you have a guy that is a must-take, no matter what our perceived depth at the position is.
Like Tre Hopkins, he also can play all three OL positions.
Further, I'm also convinced that whoever gets Matthews is also getting a leader - the kind who makes his teammates join him for 5:30 am sprints and brings them back to Houston for impromptu teaching sessions with Dad.
We haven't had that guy on the OL in three years and it's time that we found one. Or five.