Evaluating 2023 Louisiana Defensive Back, LSU Recruit Jordan Matthews
If there’s a year that LSU has a chance to really make a splash with local recruits, the 2023 recruiting class would be it. There are plenty of players within 100 miles of Baton Rouge that can help the Tigers ascend towards the top of college football again, and a certain cornerback is one that’s right around the corner from the LSU campus.
LSU Head Coach Brian Kelly and his coaching staff need to start keeping the top talent in Louisiana overall, and that starts at the home base of Baton Rouge.
Jordan Matthews
Size: 6’2”, 175-pounds
Position: Cornerback
High School: Baton Rouge (La.) Woodlawn
Class: 2023
Matthews holds offers from many programs including the hometown LSU Tigers, as well as Texas A&M, Texas, TCU, Michigan, Nebraska, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida State, Kentucky Miami, Indiana, Tennessee, Washington, Penn State, Purdue and Ole Miss among others.
The Overall Profile
When there’s a 6’2”, 175-pound cornerback in your own backyard, any college football program would be interested. When he’s truly an elite talent that also possesses a 4.0 GPA, that’s yet another reason to ramp up the recruitment.
For the Tigers, Matthews is simply a prospect that it must land. Hometown is Baton Rouge, priority position of cornerback, and an excellent student. That’s the home run recruit that the Tigers need to find a way to sign each year a player of that caliber is available in or near Baton Rouge. Breaking down Matthews’ game, there’s much to like.
Physical Play
It’s rare to see a high school cornerback that’s willing to tag a talented running back during a one-on-one situation, but Matthews does just that. In fact, he showed many physical traits during coverage, when tackling a receiver, or coming up to make a play in run support.
Frame
With the length that Matthews possesses he’s able to be more physical; hands on receivers to redirect their patterns, and he uses them for leverage when bringing a runner down to the ground. He’s still fairly thin, but Matthews has the ability to add 15-20 pounds and still be very good with his lateral movements, which is critical to cornerback play.
Instincts
Whether Breaking on the football at the opportune time, or just cutting off the running back to keep him from reaching the perimeter, Matthews always seems to be Johnny on the spot. He’s astute; this young man makes the clutch play.
Versatility
The size and athleticism of Matthews make him a candidate at cornerback or safety. He’s also a candidate to be a hybrid defensive back that plays in the slot. That’s the type of overall skills that can be very important when playing true spread teams, or just a traditional power football team. Matthews could help in many ways.
Final Thoughts
Matthews will have college coaches come at him until he signs. He’s too good to pass up. This will be a litmus test for the Tigers coaching staff as they need to make sure elite Baton Rouge prospects play for the purple and gold.
