Tennessee five-star WR signee Mike Matthews named Polynesian Bowl offensive MVP
Tennessee five-star signee Mike Matthews was named the Offensive Most Valuable Player of the Polynesian Bowl Friday night in Hawaii, giving the Vols back-to-back offensive MVPs in the high school all-star game.
Matthews caught two passes for 44 yards and a touchdown in the game, which aired on NFL Network and features the top 100 prep football players in the country. Tennessee freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava was named the game’s MVP last year.
Matthews was one of five future Vols playing in the game this year, alongside edge rusher Jordan Ross, offensive lineman Bennett Warren, linebacker Edwin Spillman and quarterback Jake Merklinger.
BIG RED ➡️ BIG ORANGE @RaiolaDylan hits @mike1matthews for 6 and the XP is good!
— POLYNESIAN BOWL (@polynesiabowl) January 20, 2024
Mauka – 17
Makai – 7
7:37 left in the third. #PolyBowl🤙🏽🌴 pic.twitter.com/FPF2mRvR5q
Matthews and Merklinger begin classes on campus at Tennessee on Tuesday.
Matthews, after signing with the Vols on National Signing Day in December, made his unofficial Tennessee debut on the practice field during bowl practices, as the Vols were prepping for a 35-0 win over Iowa in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl.
“Mike Matthews has been really good,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said at the time. “First three, four days already out on the grass, got great length, just talking about his wingspan. Extremely explosive, the ability to go up and high-point a ball over the middle of the football field or out on the edge as he’s going vertically.”
Mike Matthews headlined Tennessee’s 2024 class, ranked No. 22 overall in On3 Industry Ranking
Matthews, the 6-foot-1, 186-pound prospect out of Parkview High School in Lilburn, Ga., finished his prep career as a five-star prospect in the On3 Industry Ranking, ranked No. 22 overall in the 2024 class. He was the No. 6 wide receiver in the country and the No. 4 overall prospect in the state of Georgia.
Matthews committed to Tennessee in July, instantly becoming the headliner in Tennessee’s 2024 class. He took unofficial visits to see the Vols in October 2022, in January and in April, before an official visit last June.
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There will be an obvious growth learning curve for Matthews, as he joins a Tennessee wide receiver room that returns Squirrel White, Bru McCoy, Chas Nimrod and Kaleb Webb, along with Tulane transfer receiver Chris Brazzell.
“As a wide receiver,” Heupel said of Matthews, “you’re gonna have to develop the ability to play versus man press at the line of scrimmage. Those are things that you typically don’t see (in high school). But (he’s) a really bright guy that has got a great future.”
Charles Power, On3’s director of scouting and rankings, told Volquest’s Matt Ray in December that Matthews’ best football is clearly still in front of him.
“He has always kind of been that two-way athlete, two-way playmaker at the high school level, and we saw him play a good bit of safety this year as a senior,” Power said. “I think he is a guy that as he focuses on one position, like at receiver at Tennessee, he is going to see his play and consistency improve.
“That is probably an area where I believe he can get better relative to some other guys who get just play straight receiver at the high-school level.”
