Florida State has found themselves locked into a battle for Rivals100 DB Samari Matthews.
The Seminoles are one of four teams that Matthews will officially visit this summer, along with Clemson, South Carolina, and the newcomer to the mix, Texas.
The four-star made his way down to Tallahassee on Saturday to take in the Florida State legacy weekend, where the Seminoles invite former players to speak to the prospects among other activities that include a spring practice.
While the visit started off on par with the other times Matthews had been in Tallahassee, being able to speak to the alumni took this particular visit to the next level.
"Hearing their experience about FSU and seeing how it's always been the culture that it has been," Matthews said on what stuck with him about the visit. "They have the ability and ties to come back and comfortably speak in front of Coach Norvell (even though he didn't coach some of them). That says a lot about the tradition here at Florida State."
"I think talking to the alumni and hearing their experiences of how FSU was - it made me motivated. It made me want to suit up. The practice and the energy was intense and it makes me want to go out there and makes you feel part of the family," he later added.
In particular, Matthews got to talk one-on-one with former defensive back Renardo Green, who is coming off a great rookie season as a San Francisco 49er.
"I got to talk to him one on one about his experiences here at Florida State. He said that it's a great school and with Coach Norvell, he's making it prevail more. So that intrigues me and shows me that the culture is real. Everything you get here is real life," Matthews said.
The annual Legacy Weekend event is a great way to hear first hand accounts from the people who know the program best - the players. While by no means were the alumni sparse in previous years, this year's Legacy Weekend saw around 12 former players from the past few years attend - including multiple from the ACC Championship-winning 2023 team.
"It shows that what the media says about Coach Norvell is true," Matthews said on seeing these players back. "You hear a lot and you'd probably think that they are hyping him up to get you to commit, but hearing it from past guys - from way back - talking about how Coach Norvell is a great guy and actually knows what he is talking about. It makes you intrigued more and want to learn more about him."
Matthews also got to take in a practice, in which he spent the time closely following defensive backs coach Patrick Surtain.
"He coaches like he has been in the pros," Matthews said. "And of course that's the end goal for everyone. Being coached by one of the best to do it, it shows you what you have to do and the expectations you are held to in order to get to the next level."
Matthews will be on campus for his official visit to Florida State on June 6. the second visit of a four-week schedule for Matthews that starts with Clemson and ends with South Carolina. Matthews said he fully intends on taking those visits as he narrows down schools.
