Mattheus Carroll is a 6-foot-5, 220-pound hybrid edge from the Gilman School in Baltimore, Maryland. Nicknamed "Stretch" due to his long frame, Carrol lays siege to the offensive edges with a lengthy first step and a high motor. When he's not wreaking havoc on the gridiron he's pinning Maryland's top wrestlers to the mat. He recently finished second in the 2020 Maryland Independent Schools State Tournament for the 220-pound division.
His mixture of athleticism and frame put Carroll ahead of schedule near the end of his Sophomore year. The University of Liberty extended the first of many offers on May third of 2019, followed by Cincinnati on May seventh. Since then he's amassed ten Power-Five offers, sixteen total. One of those ten offers came from Louisville on January 22nd and the Cards have established constant communication since.
“I talk to them on a weekly basis and I talk to coach (Mark) Ivey majorly. Off of first impression, (Ivey) seems to be a good coach and a good guy. We have stayed in contact and our conversations aren’t always about football, so I can tell he is genuinely trying to get to know me,” claimed Carroll.
While Louisville is one of Carroll's more recent offers, they've been recruiting him since September of 2019, approximately. While he's visited the likes of Duke, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Stanford, Temple, and Virginia he's yet to step foot on S. Floyd. That will change soon.
“I’m still working on a visit to Louisville. I know that I will be in the area in May for my sister's AAU basketball tourney. It's called run 4 the roses or something like that," advised Carroll.
There is an AUU tourney called Run 4 the Roses. It's held at the Kentucky Expo Center and it's a premier boys camp. What Carroll meant to say was that his sister will be competing in "The Classic" which is a girl's AAU tournament at the Expo Center from May 15-17. The Expo Center is is in walking distance to the UofL football facilities so expect him on campus then.
Dave's Deliberations: Carroll's recruitment has a strong ACC feel to it but don't count out the in-state Maryland Terps. He's taken a lot of visits and things appear to be wide open right now. Multiple visits to Duke and Virginia plus a trip to Stanford also peel back another layer of Carroll's recruitment that tends to emphasize academics as an important aspect. He's visited other schools that don't have the same academic pedigree however, so it's unclear as to how much the books weigh, but they appear to move the needle to an extent. Louisville is a little behind in this race at the moment but it only takes one good visit to turn things. If Carroll is a high priority for the Cardinals' staff they're going to have to really make him feel like home when he visits.
