Ohio State Buckeyes' Jermaine Matthews Jr. Named College Football Network Freshman All-American
Ohio State's future in the secondary may be in good hands.
Cornerback Jermaine Matthews Jr. was named to the College Football Network Freshman All-America team Monday after a stellar start to his career.
In just his second game as a Buckeye, the freshman had a 58-yard interception returned for a touchdown against Western Kentucky early in the season.
Despite only playing seven games on defense, Matthews stepped up in crucial games when junior cornerback Denzel Burke and senior safety Josh Proctor missed time.
Against Penn State, Rutgers and Michigan State, Matthews recorded nine tackles and two pass breakups in the absence of Burke and Proctor. The freshman was good in man coverage this season and in those couple games without starters, he filled in perfectly.
In fact, Matthews was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week after the Penn State game on a season-high 47 snaps.
“When it feels like you’re going against the best every day, nobody that you go against on Saturday is going to equate to that,” Matthews said at media availability on Oct. 25.
The Cincinnati native was the only Ohio State player to be named to CFN's national All-Freshman team and just one of two Big Ten players to be honored, joining Purdue safety Dillon Thieneman.
As more Buckeyes accept invites for the Senior Bowl, Matthews should battle for a starting role next year with a lot of players expected to leave. Returners to coach Tim Walton's secondary who received big snaps this season will likely include sophomore safety Sonny Styles, freshman safety Malik Hartford, and Matthews.
Before 2024, however, Matthews will look to take on a bigger role starting at the Cotton Bowl Classic against the Missouri Tigers on Dec. 29.
