Five-star wide receiver Mike Matthews has been one of the top targets for Tennessee Football. The Vols landed one of Matthews’ official visits.
Ranked as the No. 6 player nationally, the 6-foot-1, 180-pound Matthews is taking an official visit to Tennessee on June 23.
“Tennessee, it’s related to their offense now and I have a good relationship with their coaches,” Matthews told Luke Winstel. “They would text me before a lot of my basketball games and that’s a whole other sport, and it would be te whole staff texting me. That’s just big how they care for me, I have a good relationship with coach (Kelsey) Pope and coach (Josh) Heupel.”
Tennessee has made up a lot of ground in the recruitment of Matthews. Ranked as the No. 1 prospect out of Georgia, Clemson and Southern California currently stand as some other schools that are vying for Matthews.
The prospect has been to Knoxville several times. He was on campus for the Vols’ win over Alabama in October. He also was on campus for a junior day in January and a spring practice in April.
When asked if Tennessee was one of his top schools, Matthews’ responded “It’s true.”
“They’re in a good place for me,” Matthews said.
On top of Matthews’ relationship with the coaching staff, he has also been in contact with several players. Those players include freshman standout Ethan Davis and former five-star quarterback Nico Iamaleava. Matthews, out of Parkview (Ga.) High School, also talked to freshman Jalen Smith who was from nearby Grayson (Ga.) High School.
Iamaleava, who would likely be Matthews’ quarterback if he went to Tennessee, has been talking to the prospect often.
“He just hit me up, he kept it short and cordial, he was just saying how he would love to have me there and that I’m a good athlete he would like to have on his team,” Matthews said.
Matthews is being recruited primarily as a receiver currently by most of schools. He ranks as the No. 3 wide receiver in the 2024 class.
“Growing up, I’ve always been a wideout and I always felt more natural at it,” Matthews said. “For defense, my only way to get on the field on Friday nights was to play safety. So, I just happened to be so good at it, I started perfecting my craft. Now I’m a good two-way player now, I have a good balance of both. It was a tough decision but I’ll probably stay at wide receiver.”
Matthews is expected to narrow his choices soon as he goes through official visits. The Vols remain one of the favorites, thanks to the relationships they have built with the young wide receiver.
Matthews has also felt the love from Tennessee fans during his visits and on social media.
“Those might be the craziest fans for me personally,” Matthews said. “I went to the Tennessee-Alabama game, it was really good to be at. Go Vols.”
