Tennessee Vols true freshman had a Jauan Jennings-like moment in win against the Kentucky Wildcats
Tennessee Vols true freshman wide receiver Mike Matthews didn't make a big impact in the box score on Saturday night against Kentucky — he had just one catch for zero yards — but the youngster from Georgia showed with one play why he deserves more playing time over the final few weeks of the season. […]
Tennessee Vols true freshman wide receiver Mike Matthews didn't make a big impact in the box score on Saturday night against Kentucky — he had just one catch for zero yards — but the youngster from Georgia showed with one play why he deserves more playing time over the final few weeks of the season.
Matthews didn't have many chances to impact the game in Tennessee's 28-18 win against the Wildcats, but he made the most of a blocking opportunity in the second quarter.
With the game tied at seven, Matthews made a block on the perimeter on a pass that went to Squirrel White that would make former Vols wide receiver Jauan Jennings proud.
That's the definition of finishing a block (and Matthews was understandably fired up after the play). That's the kind of play we see Jennings make in the NFL on a weekly basis.
The former five-star recruit is a dynamic talent and he seemingly has that "it" factor that we saw over the years from Jennings. Like Jennings, Matthews seems to always give max effort (at least based on the TV copy of games).
I'm sure Matthews would love to be catching passes and scoring touchdowns, but it says a lot about the young wide receiver that he was that fired up to make a block for a teammate. That's the kind of attitude that gets you on the field. And it's the kind of attitude that takes a talented player's game from great to elite.
Matthews is going to be a star on Rocky Top once he becomes a focal point of the Vols' offense.
It’s time for one complaint from fans and media about the Tennessee Vols to stop
Long past time for it to end
