MATT MCGLOTHLIN'S WALK-ON JOURNEY FROM "LAST STRING TO FIRST STRING"
Following is a reprint of an article by BRIAN WOODSON
in the Bristol Herald Courier July 11, 2003
After spending a year at Fork Union Military Academy, Matt McGlothlin had nearly two dozen football scholarships waiting for him. He turned them all down.
"I heard it from everybody," McGlothlin said. "Everyone was telling me to go somewhere you can play."
He did. It's the University of Tennessee.
"I hated Tennessee growing up because I always liked the Hokies," said McGlothlin, who also considered Virginia Tech and Virginia because of their medical schools. "I came down here for a ball game and I was hooked.
"It's something else playing in front of 100,000-plus people. Plus, I'm as country as they come. Being down here in Tennessee, this is perfect for me."
A 2000 graduate of Richlands High School, the 6-foot, 295-pound invited walk-on went from "last string to first string" during Tennessee's spring drills. Tennessee defensive line coach Dan Brooks expects the redshirt freshman to see the field often in the upcoming campaign.
"Matt will be in our rotation this fall," said Brooks, who lost his entire defensive front for the second year in a row. "He uses his size and leverage well and has a great motivation to be a good player."
McGlothlin said, "Coach Brooks told me that if I didn't start, I would definitely be in the ball game early."
An All-Group AA offensive and defensive linemen for the Blue Tornado, McGlothlin found little interest coming out of Richlands. He decided to attend FUMA, a renowned, but rugged prep school football program that has produced numerous college and pro football stars.
"To be honest with you, Division I is a little bit easier than Fork Union," said McGlothlin, who lost 50 pounds due to the stringent program at the Charlottesville-area prep school. "I think it's a whole lot easier at Tennessee.
"I thought Fork Union was the hardest thing I had ever done. I used to say a prayer every night, 'God, help get me through this.'"
McGlothlin's college choice was influenced by FUMA teammate, Jason Chavis, the son of Tennessee defensive coordinator John Chavis.
"I had more than 20 scholarship offers from a bunch of places," said McGlothlin, whose brother, Kevin, is an invited walk-on at Virginia Tech. "Coach Chavis' son told me I had a shot if I came down here, and he was right.
"I knew I could do it when I saw practice. It was more their style of defense. They're an attack team, and I'm really good at getting off the ball. I like laying my ears back and going hard."
For three days, McGlothlin showed he belonged, but then sprained his foot. The former Richlands' star said he was "hard-headed" and tried to come back three weeks too soon, hurting his foot again. McGlothlin wound up redshirted and ineligible, after inadvertently dropping a class.
"I know people were saying 'This kid is kind of small', but I did real well for three practices and then got hurt," said McGlothlin, who is taking pre-med courses with plans of being a plastic surgeon. "They thought I was a joke, and then I had to run with the scout team. It took me a long time to prove myself."
Most walk-ons are satisfied to just be a part of the Tennessee program, but not McGlothlin.
"I couldn't even dress out. I was ineligible to play so that was hard," said McGlothlin, whose father, Michael, was a two-time All-America center at Hampden-Sydney. "All I did was practice all week and then watch it from my house.
"It made me sick to my stomach to watch it from the stands. I just couldn't do it, that's why its been such a hard road. I just got my eligibility back and I've got four full years to play here. It's been a long road, but it's been well worth it."
A workout warrior, McGlothlin continued to build strength, looking ahead to this season. He turned heads in the spring, collecting six tackles for the orange (starters) squad in the Tennessee Orange & White Game.
"It was more of an every day thing," said McGlothlin, who wears No. 89 for the Vols. "What I learned at Fork Union was to go at it as hard as you can and give 100 percent effort every day. I did have a really good spring game, but it was more of a really good spring from day one."
Tennessee rarely recruits in Southwest Virginia, but McGlothlin hopes he can serve as an example that playing for the Vols is a dream that can be realized.
"It's actually not what I thought it would be, I thought there would be better athletes," said McGlothlin, who expects to be on scholarship in January. "You wonder how a little old Southwest Virginia athlete can compete with these guys, but they're in the same boat you are. Everybody is just trying to make it."
Even though McGlothlin is at least three inches shorter than his fellow linemen, heart and desire is an attribute that can't be measured.
"I know I'm not the most talented guy in the world, but I do have that fierce competitiveness," McGlothlin said. "There wasn't any doubt in my mind I could play at Tennessee. Not from a talent level, but I knew I could do it because of my competitive spirit and hard work.
"I knew if I really worked (hard), everything would fall into place."
Practice starts in less than a month. McGlothlin said he's been ready for a while.
"I can't wait for the season to start," he said. "I think about it every day and every night."
