5-star WR Mike Matthews names finalists, sets commitment date

Lilburn (Ga.) Parkview five-star wide receiver Mike Matthews is the highest-ranked uncommitted receiver remaining in the 2024 class. Now a decision is upcoming.

Matthews has narrowed down his list of top schools down to Clemson, Georgia, Tennessee and USC and will make his commitment decision live on On3’s YouTube channel July 19 at 7 p.m. ET.

“They’re all pretty similar schools with a few different things,” Matthews told On3. “Really it’s just different names. They’re all great schools with great coaching staffs and great players.”

The 6-foot-0.5, 180-pound pass-catcher visited each of the schools in his final four in June for official visits. He visited Clemson first on June 2 and followed that up with trips to Georgia (June 9), USC (June 17) and Tennessee (June 23).

One team holds a commanding lead in Matthews’ recruitment according to the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM). Tennessee sits at the top with a 78% chance to land his pledge. Clemson sits in second with 7.8%, Georgia at 5.8% and USC at 2.8%.

Despite that lead, Matthews says he has a tough decision looming over the next week.

“It’s really going to come down to a gut feeling,” said Matthews, the No. 14 player in the 2024 class. “I’m cool with everyone at each of the schools. I could see myself at any of them so it’s a real tough decision.”

Matthews breaks down his final four

Clemson: “What makes them different is the family they have. Dabo likes to bring players back to the staff so you know he likes to have people that have come through and been there already. They help the incoming player be able to buy into it and be great just like them.”

Georgia: “It’s the home state school and they’re hungry winners. You can’t really built a lot of those. Even though they’ve won back-to-back titles, they still want to win another one and they know that it takes a lot to be in that position. Usually people catch on but they’re still hungry to be great.”

Tennessee: “Relationships are the biggest thing at Tennessee. The air-raid offense means I’m getting the ball a lot and of course I want to make plays in college. It feels like a great opportunity and I love the coaching staff. Everyone buys into me, everyone’s a family and it’s big to have people like that on the team.”

USC: “It’s a real different environment and culture. I’ve talked to (Luke) Huard and (Lincoln) Riley a lot and they’re great people over there who just want the best for each other and for me. That’s the biggest thing to me.”