Matthews continues to explore
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- D.J. Matthews won't sign a letter of intent until February of 2017. You don't need to tell the Florida State commit that a lot can change in that sort of timeframe. He knows that. He's also not planning on making a second verbal commitment. He expects the one he made to the Seminoles in July of last year to go the distance.
But just in case, the four-star prospect is planning a hard look around. Because, hey, you never know.
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"I want to go out to check out Oregon and I'm going to go to Alabama and Georgia this offseason," Matthews said. "We'll see on those. I don't have dates or anything for Oregon yet. I just want to get there. I might just go to Oregon after The Opening."
A class-of-2017 wide receiver at Jacksonville's First Coast High School, Matthews plans to hit Alabama at the end of March. There's plenty for him to learn about the Alabama program, but what he does know has him intrigued. Matthews readily admits to that.
"Alabama is just aggressive," Matthews said. "And that's where everybody in the country goes if you're trying to compete with the best of the best."
So while he is still committed to the Seminoles, the Crimson Tide seems very much in play. Matthews says he plans to find himself on Florida State's campus at least once more this offseason and hopes to compare it to Alabama and the other schools he manages to tour in the coming months.
Still, his extended look around can be boiled down to one, intangible factor.
"I just want to be comfortable," Matthews said. "I just want to feel at home wherever I end up."
Matthews projects as one of the top prospects in the 2017 class. As a sophomore at First Coast, he caught 55 passes for 999 yards and seven touchdowns.