Good kid, good prospect, tough break for MSU.
But I doubt MSU was surprised.
Mathis has had a wandering eye for OSU for quite some time.
When I talked to him at the Ohio Rivals camp, when camp was about to get under way, I asked him about rumors that he would be visiting OSU after the camp. He flat out said he was not going to. Then two hours later, it was confirmed that he planned to visit, and I asked him again if he might hang around and go "check it out." And he said yes he might go with his teammates and just check it out.
But there was always an air of mystery or an air of an affair going on.
For MSU, the sooner this came to an end, the better.
MSU will search for someone in this class to join Rocky Lombardi and Theo Day to form a competition for the spring of 2020.
The timing isn't bad for MSU, in that the Spartans have weeks and months to form a list. But if Mathis had committed just three weeks earlier, the Spartans would have had a chance to bring in a host of candidates to perform during MSU's Elite Camp. That camp came and went with nothing but 2020s and 2021s working out for Spartan coaches.
As for names to watch, keep an eye on Walled Lake Western's 6-foot-4 Sam Johnson III, who is committed to Boston College. Once MSU gained a commitment from Mathis, the Spartans didn't need to keep Johnson in the fold. It will be interesting to see whether MSU shows interest in Johnson and whether Johnson is interested in reciprocating.
Johnson is ranked the No. 24 pro style QB in the nation by Rivals.com. Of the Top 25, 22 are committed.
The chances of MSU gaining a QB ranked as high as Mathis are remote at best. Getting a QB ranked in the Top 25 will be hard enough.
Looking for a prospect in Ohio? That's going to be tough-sledding. There are no uncommitted QBs listed in the Rivals.com in-state Top 50 in Ohio. That doesn't mean there are zero prospects in the state, but there isn't an abundance of them. There is only one QB ranked in the Top 50, and he recently committed to Missouri (Connor Bazelak of Dayton Archbishop Alter). Might he get some MSU attention now? It's possible.
The highest-ranked uncommitted pro style QB in America ironically joined Mathis in visiting Ohio State this weekend - Brian Maurer of Ocala (Fla.) West Port.
OSU offered Maurer on Friday. Some observers believed that OSU's offer to Maurer helped light the flame under Mathis to make a do-or-die decision before the weekend ended.
Now, the OSU offer is presumably no longer open to Maurer. It woudn't be a surprise if MSU reaches out to Maurer in the near future. Tennessee, West Virginia and Texas A&M were regarded as the leaders for Maurer prior to his visit to OSU.
***
I asked Rivals.com Midwest recruiting analyst Josh Helmholdt for names he thought could end up on MSU's quarterback target list.
"Payton Thorne, the Western Michigan commit out of Chicago, is one that comes to mind," Helmhold said. "Also, Dequan Finn wouldn’t surprise me. Could see them laying the groundwork this summer, then pounce in the fall if he starts well. Wouldn’t surprise me to see him have a La’Darius Jefferson type rise this fall.
"Also, Cameron Jones out of Kentucky is interesting. Cincinnati commit, but if MSU pushed him as definitely being a QB, he could flip. I think UC is leaving his position open-ended."
***
My Thoughts on Those Guys: Finn is a 6-foot, 190-pound dual threat QB for Detroit King. He is committed to Central Michigan. He's an interesting prospect, but Dantonio has never signed a QB shorter than 6-foot-2.
I agree that Thorne might be more MSU's style, at 6-foot-2.
Jones is 6-foot-8 and took official visits to Middle Tennessee State and Western Kentucky before committing to Cincinnati.
The question is whether looks to pillage a MAC-level program for a QB, or like Matt Dorsey posted earlier, wait for some committed QBs who shake loose from major conference commitments once the autumn coaching carousel starts turning.
The signing of Brian Lewerke proved that MSU's QB recruiting scope has expanded beyond the Midwest due to the Spartans' success as a program and the number of MSU quarterbacks who have made the NFL. MSU has some interesting decisions and evaluations to make in the coming weeks and months at the QB position.
As for Mathis, I like him as a prospect and a bright mind. But he had only a 33 percent chance of sticking at Michigan State if he enrolled here. By that, I mean he had a 33 percent chance of beating out Lombardi and Day. And if he didn't beat them out, his wandering eye would have made him a 66 percent candidate to transfer at some point anyway.
But I doubt MSU was surprised.
Mathis has had a wandering eye for OSU for quite some time.
When I talked to him at the Ohio Rivals camp, when camp was about to get under way, I asked him about rumors that he would be visiting OSU after the camp. He flat out said he was not going to. Then two hours later, it was confirmed that he planned to visit, and I asked him again if he might hang around and go "check it out." And he said yes he might go with his teammates and just check it out.
But there was always an air of mystery or an air of an affair going on.
For MSU, the sooner this came to an end, the better.
MSU will search for someone in this class to join Rocky Lombardi and Theo Day to form a competition for the spring of 2020.
The timing isn't bad for MSU, in that the Spartans have weeks and months to form a list. But if Mathis had committed just three weeks earlier, the Spartans would have had a chance to bring in a host of candidates to perform during MSU's Elite Camp. That camp came and went with nothing but 2020s and 2021s working out for Spartan coaches.
As for names to watch, keep an eye on Walled Lake Western's 6-foot-4 Sam Johnson III, who is committed to Boston College. Once MSU gained a commitment from Mathis, the Spartans didn't need to keep Johnson in the fold. It will be interesting to see whether MSU shows interest in Johnson and whether Johnson is interested in reciprocating.
Johnson is ranked the No. 24 pro style QB in the nation by Rivals.com. Of the Top 25, 22 are committed.
The chances of MSU gaining a QB ranked as high as Mathis are remote at best. Getting a QB ranked in the Top 25 will be hard enough.
Looking for a prospect in Ohio? That's going to be tough-sledding. There are no uncommitted QBs listed in the Rivals.com in-state Top 50 in Ohio. That doesn't mean there are zero prospects in the state, but there isn't an abundance of them. There is only one QB ranked in the Top 50, and he recently committed to Missouri (Connor Bazelak of Dayton Archbishop Alter). Might he get some MSU attention now? It's possible.
The highest-ranked uncommitted pro style QB in America ironically joined Mathis in visiting Ohio State this weekend - Brian Maurer of Ocala (Fla.) West Port.
OSU offered Maurer on Friday. Some observers believed that OSU's offer to Maurer helped light the flame under Mathis to make a do-or-die decision before the weekend ended.
Now, the OSU offer is presumably no longer open to Maurer. It woudn't be a surprise if MSU reaches out to Maurer in the near future. Tennessee, West Virginia and Texas A&M were regarded as the leaders for Maurer prior to his visit to OSU.
***
I asked Rivals.com Midwest recruiting analyst Josh Helmholdt for names he thought could end up on MSU's quarterback target list.
"Payton Thorne, the Western Michigan commit out of Chicago, is one that comes to mind," Helmhold said. "Also, Dequan Finn wouldn’t surprise me. Could see them laying the groundwork this summer, then pounce in the fall if he starts well. Wouldn’t surprise me to see him have a La’Darius Jefferson type rise this fall.
"Also, Cameron Jones out of Kentucky is interesting. Cincinnati commit, but if MSU pushed him as definitely being a QB, he could flip. I think UC is leaving his position open-ended."
***
My Thoughts on Those Guys: Finn is a 6-foot, 190-pound dual threat QB for Detroit King. He is committed to Central Michigan. He's an interesting prospect, but Dantonio has never signed a QB shorter than 6-foot-2.
I agree that Thorne might be more MSU's style, at 6-foot-2.
Jones is 6-foot-8 and took official visits to Middle Tennessee State and Western Kentucky before committing to Cincinnati.
The question is whether looks to pillage a MAC-level program for a QB, or like Matt Dorsey posted earlier, wait for some committed QBs who shake loose from major conference commitments once the autumn coaching carousel starts turning.
The signing of Brian Lewerke proved that MSU's QB recruiting scope has expanded beyond the Midwest due to the Spartans' success as a program and the number of MSU quarterbacks who have made the NFL. MSU has some interesting decisions and evaluations to make in the coming weeks and months at the QB position.
As for Mathis, I like him as a prospect and a bright mind. But he had only a 33 percent chance of sticking at Michigan State if he enrolled here. By that, I mean he had a 33 percent chance of beating out Lombardi and Day. And if he didn't beat them out, his wandering eye would have made him a 66 percent candidate to transfer at some point anyway.
