Gators to get this physically-gifted tight end on campus for May visit
April has been a busy month for Florida football recruiting efforts, which has seen a plethora of prep prospects pop in for a visit to see Billy Napier and his staff. While the staff plans on hitting the road in May to visit a laundry list of recruits, the Gators will still be hosting high school athletes who are looking to matriculate with the Orange and Blue.
One of the most recent names that have come up for a visit next month is four-star tight end Walter Matthews out of Hiram (Georgia), who told Swamp247’s Blake Alderman. The massive 6-foot-7-inch, 245-pound prospect plans on stopping in Gainesville on May 13 along with his father.
The high school junior’s size alone makes him a precious commodity on the field but his ability to also show some soft hands on the receiving side ups the ante even further. Florida has coveted the Peach State product for some time, recruiting him hard between the tenures of former tight ends coach William Peagler and current coach Russ Callaway.
“I want to hang out more with Coach Callaway and hang out with some of the other coaches again,” he told Alderman. “I want to see the new facility. I want to see how they coach and how they treat the players.”
Matthews has made one prior trip to the Swamp, which came last season for the South Carolina Gamecocks matchup, making this upcoming May stop his second visit to Hogtown.
Other schools in the mix for the physically-gifted tight end are the Florida State Seminoles, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, Michigan Wolverines, USC Trojans, Ohio State Buckeyes and Colorado Buffaloes — all of whom he has visited this offseason. He plans on taking his time deciding on his next ventures, which he expects to spread between June and the fall months.
Matthews is ranked No. 114 overall and No. 7 at his position nationally according to the 247Sports composite while the On3 industry ranking has him at Nos. 105 and 8, respectively. On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine has UF ahead with a 17.4% chance of signing him, while the Buckeyes, Wolverines and Trojans trail closely behind at 15.2%, 13.0% and 10.9%, respectively.
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