Rivals Rewind: Tyrann Mathieu

There was Tyrann Mathieu, doubled over, holding a water bottle and caked with sweat. The former Heisman Trophy finalist had just been put through a strenuous physical test, and he needed a moment to recover.

On this day, however, he was nowhere near a football field.

Mathieu, the third-year defensive back for the Arizona Cardinals, was filming a PSA for PETA. He sat in his car for eight minutes on a 90-degree day in Phoenix as the temperature inside the car rose to 120 degrees. The message - do not leave your dog in your car for any length of time.

"We might get caught up running into the grocery store or the post office and leave the dog in the car for five or ten minutes, but we don't realize how quickly the car can heat up on the dog," Mathieu said. "So it was really just a public service announcement to just remind everybody during the summertime or anytime that it's hot out to not leave your dog in the car."

The video has over 2 million views on YouTube, which is almost twice as many as his highlight reel from LSU that promoted him for the Heisman Trophy in 2011. After a series of jaw-dropping plays in purple and gold, the LSU athletic department inserted some video from his days at New Orleans (La.) St. Augustine, back in the days when the jitterbug dominated the competition yet was slow to be recruited by major programs.

Lacking any SEC offers the summer before his senior season, Mathieu embarked on a summer camp tour. His final three stops were Tennessee, Alabama and LSU, and it was in Knoxville where Rivals spotted his potential ahead of some SEC staffs.

"Back then everyone was either a cornerback or a safety," Mathieu said. "They weren't really looking for that hybrid type of player. So if you needed a cornerback, I didn't really fit the bill of being a 6-foot-0 cornerback and I couldn't really fit in most schemes. Most teams liked to play Cover 2 and they need those big cornerbacks and I never really fit that. I think Lane Kiffin was (Tennessee's) defensive coordinator and he ran a Cover 2, so I think me not being six feet definitely played a part in me not getting any of those offers. I was pretty good at being a cornerback and covering guys, but I never fit most coaches' schemes. That's why I think I never got recruited highly."

Rivals national recruiting director Mike Farrell was in Knoxville for that camp and remembers Mathieu's outstanding performance.

"First off, Kiffin was the head coach at Tennessee at the time, but that is typical Tyrann Mathieu, he didn't get caught up in who was who and who he needed to impress. He just wanted to ball out," Farrell said. "And secondly, he was more than pretty good at covering as a cornerback. He was outstanding. I remember how loaded that camp was with wide receivers like Markeith Ambles and Jarvis Landry, both five-star guys, and this unknown kid blanketed both of them. Victor Beasley was at that camp as well and a ton of elite big guys, but Mathieu was the story of the camp. I will admit even after his great performance I had questions about his size as a corner. He just wasn't a physically impressive kid, but technically he was as sound as they come."

He earned a fourth-star with Rivals, but did not earn an offer from Tennessee.

"We were way ahead of the curve on that one and I have to give as much credit as anyone to my former fellow analyst Barton Simmons, who was at that camp with me," said Farrell. "He fell in love with the kid, absolutely enamored. I wasn't sure I was seeing a guy who would get that big offer because after Tennessee passed, I thought everyone would think he was too small and skinny. But we pushed ahead and ranked him as a four-star without that BCS offer. People say it's all about offers with rankings, but it's clearly not. Mathieu could have ended up at Louisiana-Monroe and we still felt he'd be a star. But everyone will admit that we had no idea he'd have such an impact on the college football landscape. Heisman finalist? No way, no how. But he was a natural, simply always around the ball."

LSU came through with that elusive offer after Mathieu camped there, and the defensive back committed shortly thereafter. Head coach Les Miles was one of the major reasons LSU was Mathieu's choice.

"He has a strange way of using his words," said a laughing Mathieu "His word placement isn't always correct at times, but he's a very charismatic guy. You definitely know when he's in the room. He definitely played a large part of my recruiting process. He made me feel at home and welcome once I got to LSU."

Mathieu excelled despite his size, forcing turnovers and returning punts. His 'Honey Badger' nickname spread quickly across the college football landscape as he proved being undersized at cornerback did not mean a player could not compete in the SEC.

"Going back to the Tennessee camp, that week going up against some of the best receivers in the country, those guys having four or five inches on me, that helped my confidence going forward," he said. "Even when I got to LSU, I knew I could compete with the bigger guys and better guys. Just knowing that you might not be six feet and you might not be what coaches are looking for I think that puts a chip on your shoulder because you want to prove everyone wrong. You just want to make plays on the field."

After a spectacular sophomore season that saw him finish fifth in the Heisman voting, Mathieu was dismissed from team in August, 2012, reportedly for failing multiple drug tests. Mathieu sat out the season, then entered the draft, where the Cardinals selected him in the third round. He has seemingly recovered and gotten his football career back on track after his off-the-field struggles that came along with his new-found fame.

"I wasn't highly recruited, I wasn't what anyone was really looking for and suddenly I was the epitome of what everybody should be," he said. "It was different. It was a drastic change, but it was a great experience. Some things I handled great, other things I didn't handle well, but to just have that experience at such a young age I was really grateful for it because it's really helping me right now as I get started with my NFL career. Everything plays a part when you think about the big picture."

Mathieu has performed very well in his 17 starts over his first two seasons, but he has dealt with a knee and hand injury over the last two seasons that has limited those opportunities.

"I know I can play at this level. It's just the issue of me getting through a season healthy," said Mathieu. "I think if I'm able to do that I think all of the accolades and the awards will come with it. When I am on the field I usually do perform pretty well so it's just getting through a full season healthy."

Mathieu still has plenty of time to go before he worries about his post-football life, but he has already put some thought into it.

"For me it will probably be either coaching or acting," he said. "I'm kind of on the fence right now on which one I really want to commit to, but definitely one of those things. I think coaching will probably end up on my resume though. I have two sons so I would definitely love to coach them in high school or whatnot, so that would be pretty cool. I'm also looking to start up my own camp, probably next off-season, so I'm looking forward to doing that back home in New Orleans."

While Mathieu's recruiting process never got crazy, he was around the big-time college game long enough to see how everything works. With what he learned, experienced and witnessed, he is very comfortable in giving some advice to today's top recruits.

"Don't get caught up in it," he said. "I'd probably let my parents handle it or my coach, people who I feel comfortable speaking on my behalf. I really wouldn't indulge in it too much. I mean taking visits and going to all of the different camps is fun, but you still have to be a kid and not get caught up in trying to be a professional just yet. You're still a student-athlete right now, so just don't get caught up in the perks of it rather than putting in the hard work every day. Football is a tool that will open up other doors for you and it might not be the NFL so just always keep that in mind when you're going through the recruiting process and I think you'll be OK."