Tom’s River (NJ) top-100 prospect Jaelyne Matthews has no shortage of suitors as the 6-foot-5.5, 273-pound offensive tackle fields over 20 verbal offers heading into the spring. That means Matthews, who is set to play lacrosse this spring, is preparing for a busy next few months.
“Rutgers, Miami (FL), Kentucky, Maryland, Baylor, Tennessee, Georgia, Ohio State, Texas, Syracuse, Colorado and Arkansas,” Matthews told IBG were the schools pushing hardest in his recruitment.
“A lot of schools are trying to get officials, just not every school will get an official. I just feel like I want to fit into those schools. A lot of people get visits to 40-plus schools and want to take officials to every school. Kudos to them for doing that but it kind of messes up your recruiting process a little bit. I’m going straight for a school that I fit into and feel comfortable at and have a good chance at playing at. I’m not trying to mess up my mindset by visiting 40 schools and not finding the right fit.”
Matthews took advantage of the long weekend to begin mapping out visits to some of those top schools and the first one set is an official visit to Rutgers beginning on June 7. He’ll also head to Miami (FL) next month for an unofficial visit on March 23, but Maryland remains a school firmly in the mix to get a return visit.
Matthews emphasized that “I am definitely taking an official visit to Maryland.”
“I’m definitely considering Maryland. They’re definitely in the running for me. I’ve spent a lot of time with the coaches and built a good relationship with them,” he told IBG. “I like Maryland a lot. When I got there it felt like home. It wasn’t the only school that I felt like home, but they’re definitely some things that set them aside from other schools.”
Maryland was able to crack into the top group for Matthews through the fall after offensive assistant Luke Butera spearheaded the Terps’ recruiting efforts at his former stomping grounds, getting the Terps into the mix despite Matthews backing off his pledge to Penn State during his junior season. Since then, offensive coordiantor Josh Gattis and offensive line coach Brian Braswell have led the way while the school has left an impression on Matthews.
“It fits the school feeling that I love. It’s not super duper big school and it has a really good following from New Jersey to Maryland. I feel like I fit the culture there.”
Jaelyne Matthews is rated a four-star prospect and a 92 overall by On3, sitting as the 86th-best prospect nationally and the nation’s ninth-best offensive tackle.
Related Links
Former Maryland assistant Henry Baker expected to land at Marshall
Maryland among the most consistent schools with in-state OL (+)
Notes: basketball visitors + staff note (+)
Maryland baseball takes opening series vs. Georgia Southern
Maryland survives fifth-ranked Syracuse in 13-12 overtime thriller