South Carolina · L 24-27
5 catches, 47 yards
The other 7 games average 69 yards. This one was 22 below.
Dashed line: 100 yards.
“I’d love to see Mike Matthews truck David Smith”
Tennessee fan, r/CFB game thread · at South Carolina, Oct 24
11 stories in the last 30 days, from 5 outlets.
Why Tennessee has to feed Mike Matthews down the stretch
Sports Illustrated Oct 27
No bar in a game where the team had under 100 receiving yards: a share of that little says nothing.
Share of the team's total this season.
Seen from behind the quarterback; numbers are yards past the line of scrimmage. The play text only says left, middle or right, so inside a lane marks are sorted, not placed. Of his catches with a spot in the play text: left 4, middle 10, right 16.
Mike Matthews
Beats you over the top. Third year in the same receiving corps at Tennessee. On tape: 132 receiving yards and 4 receptions against Furman, Week 1, 2026.
528 receiving yards · 34 catches · 3 receiving TD
Play style
Stretches the field vertically. Every snap is a potential big play.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
from 5 outlets
Why Tennessee has to feed Mike Matthews down the stretch
Sports Illustrated Oct 27 · 1 outlet
Sports IllustratedEverything Mike Matthews Said Ahead of Tennessee vs. ArkansasOct 6
Rocky Top Insider“It’s Not a Clean Hit”: Alabama Defender Reacts to Mike Matthews’ Monster Block During Tennessee’s WinOct 18
Yahoo SportsJosh Heupel drops strong comment on Vols WR Mike Matthews' illegal blindside block in Tennessee's win over AlabamaOct 19Sports IllustratedEverything Mike Matthews Said Ahead of Tennessee vs. South CarolinaOct 20from 8 outlets
Tennessee Football Coach Kelsey Pope Details Braylon Staley and Mike Matthews' Checklist
Sports Illustrated +1 Aug 14 · 2 outlets
On3How Tennessee's duo of Braylon Staley, Mike Matthews are continuing to evolveAug 7
Locked OnArion Carter and Mike Matthews on elite College Football freak listAug 12Yahoo SportsHow Tennessee football's Mike Matthews, Braylon Staley became elite SEC receiversAug 19
WVLT30 Days 30 Vols: Mike Matthews on why he keeps choosing Tennessee and playing for his familySep 1
A to Z SportsTennessee WR Mike Matthews has something that not enough college players have, and it's going to be a difference maker in 2026Sep 3On3What Tennessee WR coach Kelsey Pope said about Mike Matthews, Georgia TechSep 8Sports IllustratedEverything Mike Matthews Said Ahead of Tennessee vs. ArkansasOct 6Rocky Top Insider“It’s Not a Clean Hit”: Alabama Defender Reacts to Mike Matthews’ Monster Block During Tennessee’s WinOct 18Yahoo SportsJosh Heupel drops strong comment on Vols WR Mike Matthews' illegal blindside block in Tennessee's win over AlabamaOct 19Sports IllustratedEverything Mike Matthews Said Ahead of Tennessee vs. South CarolinaOct 20
Saturday Down SouthFaizon Brandon shows off arm strength with 57-yard TD pass to Mike MatthewsSep 5On3Volquest 2-Minute Drill: Why Tennessee WR Mike Matthews got off to a fast startSep 8Saturday Down SouthMike Matthews gives Tennessee halftime lead with Wildcat TDOct 24Sports IllustratedMike Matthews Previews Furman vs. Tennessee Football During Game WeekAug 31Sports IllustratedTennessee WR Mike Matthews Could Be Key to Unlocking South Carolina’s DefenseOct 24Sports IllustratedA to Z SportsA to Z SportsOn3WVLTSports Illustrated +1On3A to Z SportsEach week: his team’s game, the stories about him that week, and the week’s biggest news headline.
Stories are headlines grouped by what they are about, counted through Nov 4.
Fans first named Mike Matthews vs Furman.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
Last game (Wk 8): 47 receiving yards, 5 catches.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 8 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 56-9vs Furman | 4 | 132 | 33.0 | 2 | 57 | Season-high 132 yds |
| Wk 2 | W 45-24@ Georgia Tech | 2 | 16 | 8.0 | 0 | 12 | |
| Wk 3 | W 42-9vs Kennesaw State | 4 | 41 | 10.3 | 0 | 18 | |
| Wk 4 | L 17-20vs No. 1 Texas | 4 | 72 | 18.0 | 1 | 30 | |
| Wk 5 | W 24-14vs Auburn | 4 | 57 | 14.3 | 0 | 42 | |
| Wk 6 | W 24-17@ Arkansas | 4 | 78 | 19.5 | 0 | 33 | |
| Wk 7 | W 26-10vs No. 6 Alabama | 7 | 85 | 12.1 | 0 | 19 | |
| Wk 8 | L 24-27@ South Carolina | 5 | 47 | 9.4 | 0 | 19 | |
| Total | 34 | 528 | 15.5 | 3 | 57 |
Oct. 24 · L 24-27 at South Carolina, play by play
5 catches for 47 yards. Tennessee threw to him on 7 of its 23 passes.
19-yard catch. Second quarter, down 17-14.
10-yard catch on 3rd and 22. Fourth quarter, up 21-17.
7 catches for 85 yards. Tennessee threw to him on 9 of its 31 passes.
Incomplete on 3rd and 12. First quarter, tied 0-0. Broken up by Alabama’s B. Hubbard.
19-yard catch. Fourth quarter, up 19-10.
Seen from behind the quarterback; numbers are yards past the line of scrimmage. The play text only says left, middle or right, so inside a lane marks are sorted, not placed.
4 catches for 78 yards. Tennessee threw to him on 5 of its 29 passes.
19-yard catch on 3rd and 11. Second quarter, up 7-0. Converted.
33-yard catch. Fourth quarter, tied 17-17.
Seen from behind the quarterback; numbers are yards past the line of scrimmage. The play text only says left, middle or right, so inside a lane marks are sorted, not placed.
4 catches for 57 yards.
Not drawn: the play-by-play has 4 catches for 61 yards, the box score 4 for 57, so no play is placed until they agree.
4 catches for 72 yards and a touchdown. Tennessee threw to him on 10 of its 32 passes.
Incomplete on 3rd and 7. First quarter, down 7-0.
30-yard touchdown. Fourth quarter, cut it to 20-17.
Seen from behind the quarterback; numbers are yards past the line of scrimmage. The play text only says left, middle or right, so inside a lane marks are sorted, not placed.
4 catches for 41 yards. Tennessee threw to him on 7 of its 26 passes.
3-yard catch on 3rd and 6. First quarter, tied 0-0.
18-yard catch. Third quarter, up 28-3.
Seen from behind the quarterback; numbers are yards past the line of scrimmage. The play text only says left, middle or right, so inside a lane marks are sorted, not placed.
2 catches for 16 yards. Tennessee threw to him on 5 of its 21 passes.
12-yard catch. Fourth quarter, up 31-17.
Seen from behind the quarterback; numbers are yards past the line of scrimmage. The play text only says left, middle or right, so inside a lane marks are sorted, not placed.
4 catches for 132 yards and 2 touchdowns, his most this season. Tennessee threw to him on 8 of its 27 passes.
Incomplete on 4th and 3. First quarter, up 7-0. Turnover on downs.
57-yard touchdown. Third quarter, made it 42-0.
Seen from behind the quarterback; numbers are yards past the line of scrimmage. The play text only says left, middle or right, so inside a lane marks are sorted, not placed.
Week 1 · 2026
W 56-9
vs Furman
4 rec · 132 yds · 2 TD
Dominant 47-point win at home against Furman.
With F. Brandon — 226 yds · 3 TD · 0 INT · 68 rush yds (10 car) · 2 TD · J. Baker — 89 rush yds (3 car) · 1 TD
The plays that mattered most
63rd in receiving yards, among all 2,086 FBS players with a receiving row this season, any position
Conference ranks count every player in the conference with a row in that stat, any position. Career ranks count current FBS players, from the games in our log.
Ratings of the games shown run from -14 to +21 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Receiver profile · Targets, catch rate, and throw depth
How often he's targeted, and how well it works
Targets
5527% of team targetsCatch rate
62%34 of 55 targetsBehind LOS · Negative air yds
Short · 0–9 air yds
Middle · 10–19 air yds
Deep · 20+ air yds
62% catch rate on 55 targets · 27% of the team's targets · 50% catch rate on 6 deep targets (20+ air yds).
3 seasons under Josh Heupel — 24-10 over that span.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| REC/g | YDS/g | YPR | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home5g | 4.6 | 77.4 | 17.5 | 0.6 |
| Road3g | 3.7 | 47.0 | 12.3 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| REC/g | YDS/g | YPR | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-77g | 4.1 | 68.7 | 16.5 | 0.4 |
| Weeks 8+1g | 5.0 | 47.0 | 9.4 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Josh Heupel
Pass share
37.5%
207 pass / 345 run
Plays / game
69.0
8 games
Team sack rate
9.1%
242 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-heavy.
Player standing · 2026
About as many catches a game as a typical FBS receiver who plays every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Former five-star. Now #67 at the position.
2026 outlook
Outside shot for All-SEC
Based on 2025: #15 of 58 SEC WRs
A base rate for the rank, not a forecast of this player: 22% of returning players who ranked #11–20 at their position in their conference made an all-conference team the next season (95% confidence interval 19–25%).
2026 is in progress.
A stat line in 25 games over three seasons.
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
1 coachPlayed every college season under Josh Heupel.
