Don't miss out on any of our exclusive football, basketball and recruiting coverage. Sign up with TheHoosier.com here.
After just one week of fall camp, it's clear that Indiana missed wide receiver DJ Matthews last season after losing him to a season-ending injury.
Matthews, who suffered a torn ACL in Indiana's week four win over Western Kentucky, was starting to emerge as the explosive threat that the IU offense needed. After sitting out the remainder of the season, Indiana head coach Tom Allen says he expects Matthews to be ready for Indiana's season-opener against Illinois on Sept. 2 this season.
"Yeah, he's expected to be ready for week one," Allen told the media on Friday afternoon. "... He didn't practice in the spring, obviously, coming off that injury. So it's still a progression you go through with everything, and more than anything, it's just the load that he's able to handle."
Matthews finished the 2021 season with 13 catches for 165 yards. He also had two carries for 28 yards and a touchdown to go along with an 81-yard punt return touchdown. Before his injury, Matthews was coming off of his best game, going for 120 yards on five catches against Cincinnati.
"After the first practice when we came back together as a staff, the general consensus, we were like, 'wow, boy, did we sure miss DJ last year.'" Allen said. "He didn't get to play very many games, so you kind of forget how good he really was.
"He's just a special player. He's got really, really special ball skills. He knows how to get open. Got a lot of moxie and savvy and toughness to him. So just a really, really good football player."
Matthews transferred in from Florida State ahead of the 2021 season and was expecting to play a big role in the passing and kick returning game.
In three seasons with Florida State, Matthews totaled 83 receptions for 807 yards and five touchdowns. His career-best game came in 2018 against No. 21 NC State where he hauled in 10 catches for 133 yards and a touchdown. He started nine games in 2019.
The 5-foot-11 speedster will return as one of the more versatile players in the country. This offseason, he was named to the preseason watch list for the Paul Hornung Award, given annually to the most versatile player in major college football.
Indiana lost veteran players at the wide receiver position this offseason so Matthews is expected to not just replace that production on the field, but also be more of a leader in the locker room, something he's already doing.
"He’s a talented player who has really bought in and become a leader in that room, and that really excites me," Allen said. "He and I have met a lot one-on-one, this past year for sure, even before that. Just a strong connection there and a lot of mutual respect for him and the man that he's becoming."
----
• Talk about it inside The Hoops Forum or The Football Forum
• Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes
• Follow us on Twitter: @IndianaRivals
• Like us on Facebook.
