I've read a lot about recruiting and thought I would share some of the process to give readers some perspective.
My son, Collin Matteson, will arrive at West Point in June of 2022. We couldn't be more excited for him.
He went to a private, christian school in Oklahoma. The school has a solid football tradition having won state championships. The last two years they went 24-2 and Collin finished his HS career with a 36-13 record. The bigger the game, the further they went in the playoffs, the better he played. I'm sharing this to give you some perspective.
Collin didn't play his first few games his freshman year. It was game 3 or 4 that a senior went down and they threw him in at WR. Growing up he had played QB and LB but that's just because his football IQ. We knew he wasn't a QB but in youth football, it's give it to the fastest kid and let him go. Anyway, they put him in at WR because he would block and had great hands. He started every game of his career post that opportunity and made some noise as a freshman but nothing crazy. I think he had 4 TD's and 260 yards or something.
Sophomore Season: They moved him to corner (never played) and WR. He had 6 INT's as a corner and was gaining some attention. Colleges wanted him to get on campus and see him in person. The unofficial visits, the elite prospect camps, etc. is what we were hearing. Then Covid hit and he couldn't attend any camps the summer between his sophomore and junior year. They were all cancelled. No in person unofficial visits.
Junior Season: Collin really "blew up" his junior year. They moved him to Safety and he started both ways, WR and Safety. I'd have to go look but he had 10 or 11 INT's and was ranked in the top 5 nationally. He had 110 tackles. The defense his school ran basically manned up outside and let Collin roam the field and make plays. Roy Manning (at OU and now at USC) told us that Collin's football IQ is 5 stars, his nose for the football, toughness, all those things were off the charts. What hurt him at Safety was his height (he's 6', maybe 6' 1/8") and speed (ran 4.6 at Wake Forest) hurt him. OU wanted guys who run 4.5's and Collin's best time was a 4.6 flat. A lesson we learned during this recruiting process is you have to get trainers to help you run 40's, etc.. Collin has never trained to run or how to prepare for camps. He just went out and did his thing. He's a 6' kid who can dunk so he's athletic but not athletic or with enough size for power 5 schools. Colleges recruit on potential. That was a big lesson we learned.
Colleges kept contacting but one knock on Collin was he played at a private christian school and although he was dominating, that was a concern. Nobody came out and said that but it was clear. Kansas State, Wake Forest and Duke were three of the larger schools he heard from. He had gotten some offers from Ivy League schools. Air Force called to offer and during the conversation Collin told him he had a small torn meniscus which he played his final 3 games of his junior season with and they backed off. They later came back and offered, more on that in a minute. Duke was the largest school that shown interest first. He had some zooms with them. I remember one where coach Cutcliffe was at his home. That was weird but covid made the world upside down. Collin got his Army offer during his junior year. Coach Shiel Wood was the one who recruited Collin and our family was PUMPED.
We went on a little tour of schools between his junior and senior season. Took unofficial visits to Ivy's, and others. Wake Forest, Vanderbilt, Kansas State and Army were the main on his list. Long story short, WF had 2 safeties ranked higher on their board and never offered. They came back his senior season and inquired about interest as a PWO, Collin wasn't interested. Kansas State went totally dark, they didn't want him. We never heard much from Vanderbilt that summer. He went to some camps and did well. SMU had his 40 time at 4.3 which was totally wrong. Laser times are the only way to get 40 times, don't believe all these times you see guys posting. Put them on a laser to see their times! Going into his senior season, he was leaning Army.
Senior Season: Collin had a great senior season. He went on an official to Army and had an amazing visit. He fell in love with Army. Coach Wood recruited him the hardest. Army made Collin a priority and that was very clear. We met Anthony Soto during that visit (weekend they played UCONN). My dad (his grandpa, RIP) was a full bird colonel. My family has always been patriotic. We love our country and it's in his DNA. My largest concern was Coach Monken's contract, how long was he going to be there. The NIL piece weighed in a little, not because I though Collin could make a bunch of money with NIL but given the portal and NIL, what effect does that have on a school like Army and their ability to compete in years forward. I think it puts us at a disadvantage.
Collin committed to Army 4-5 games into his senior season. Vanderbilt invited him up for a visit. He told them to pound sand. I was a little surprised. He said they were bad, he wasn't their priority and now all of a sudden they came back, no thanks. Oklahoma State did the same late, he was headed up to watch OSU-Baylor and then cancelled last minute. He knew he wanted to attend Army. A couple of days before he signed with Army, OU called (after Venables was hired) and said he could take a PWO. Collin said no thanks. Then just a few days prior to signing day, Air Force (who had offered his senior year) came back for a home visit. Collin didn't really want to meet with them. He is fiercely loyal. It was my wife who encouraged him to at least listen. Colorado Springs is much closer to home was her reasoning (myself and my older son are also pilots) but we never told Collin that. Air Force came and we had a great in home visit. He shut the door, turned around and said he's going to Army. We said something to the effect of, that was fast, awesome, why? His response I will never forget: "I don't want to drop bombs on someone from 40K feet, I want to look them in the eye and split their _______ head open". You would have to know my son but that was crazy talk. He's a quiet kid. He's a kid who when it gets below freezing wants to go camp and try to survive off the land. He has no issue testing his toughness.
We ended up going to watch the bowl game, that was a fun experience. A few days later coach Wood left, this wasn't the best news but didn't phase Collin. Coach Sloan has been to the house and seems like a good guy. Collin is going to play Safety so he will be his position coach.
He finished his career with some decent numbers:
Senior Season: 2,393 total yards (return, RB, receiver) 27 TD's, 8 INT's and 127 tackles
Career: 4,980 total yards, 52 TD (total INT's, Returns & Offensive) and 24 INT's & 237 tackles
He was all-state & district player of the year
Finalist for Oklahoma defensive player of the year
Career W/L: 36-13
Last two years: 24-2
Hopefully that gives fans a little glimpse of the process. Look forward to seeing everyone at some games. #BEATnavy
