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15
Matthew Thomas
Matthew Thomas

Class:
Senior
Hometown:
Pearson, Ga.
High School:
Arkinson County
Height / Weight:
6-1 / 188
Position:
WR
Birthdate:
12/31/1982
Experience:
2VL
Major:
In the College of Liberal Arts

2004 Preseason - Talented receiver who is gearing up for a solid senior season ... Has good speed and is a veteran ... Coaches will be counting on him being productive in 2004 ... Is also a valuable return specialist ... In the Spring Game, he had two receptions for 36 yards.

2003 -Wide receiver who started nine of the 11 games he saw action in ... Team's second leading receiver with 24 receptions for 442 yards and two touchdowns ... Was on the receiving end of a 98-yard touchdown bomb from Dondrial Pinkins in the game at Ole Miss ... That ranks as the second longest pass play in Carolina history ... Went over the 100-yard receiving mark in two games - four catches for 102 yards and one touchdown vs. LSU and 2 receptions for 113 yards and one TD vs. Ole Miss ... His TD reception vs. LSU went for 77 yards ... Led the Gamecocks in kickoff returns, with 422 yards on 22 returns (19.2 average) ... Had a long return of 74 yards against UAB ... Had 106 return yards vs. Georgia (five returns) ... Tallied 859 all-purpose yards to rank second on the team behind Demetris Summers.

2002 -Athletic wide receiver who saw action in nine games with three starts (Virginia, Georgia and Arkansas) ... Also played some cornerback towards the end of the season ... Finished the year with eight receptions for 73 yards and one touchdown ... Also returned eight kickoffs for 212 yards (26.5 average) and one touchdown ... Returned a kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown vs. Virginia, the first kickoff return for a touchdown for Carolina since the 1997 season ... Also caught his first career TD pass against the Cavaliers (10 yards) ... Played well in the season opener vs. New Mexico State, catching two passes for 41 yards ... Had two receptions for 23 yards vs. Georgia ... Moved to cornerback the week of the Mississippi State ... Defensively, he finished the season with 19 total tackles (11 solo) ... Saw action at that position for 21 snaps vs. the Bulldogs and responded with four total tackles ... Against Kentucky, he played 50 snaps and made five tackles ... In the LSU game, he played 31 snaps and was in on four tackles ... Against Tennessee, he had six tackles (four solo) while playing 34 snaps ... When the injuries began to mount up at wide receiver, he was moved back to that position prior to the Arkansas game ... Started against the Razorbacks and had one reception and one rush for 15 yards ... Reaggravated an ankle sprain against Arkansas and was not available for the Florida or Clemson games ... Missed most of spring practice due to an ankle sprain he suffered while playing pickup basketball ... Unfortunately, he missed out on some valuable practice time.

2001 -True freshman wide receiver who displayed promising talent in his rookie season ... Appeared in all 11 games with six starts ...Caught 18 passes for 234 yards ... Team's third leading receiver on the season ... Received the Scott Sinclair Award, presented annually to USC's top freshman performer ... His defining moment his rookie year came on his clutch 32-yard reception from Phil Petty on USC's game-winning TD drive against Georgia, a third-down conversion play that helped set up the winning score just moments later ... Had a season-long 58-yard reception against Alabama ... Also had two carries for 24 yards, with a long run of 18 yards ... Had three catches for 25 yards vs. Tennessee, three receptions for 26 yards vs. Wofford, and one catch for 26 yards vs. Florida ... His long rush of 18 yards came against Tennessee ... Returned one kickoff for 12 yards.

HIGH SCHOOL - Played wide receiver and defensive back at Atkinson County High School ... Had seven interceptions with three returned for touchdowns his junior season ... As a senior, he had 24 receptions for 852 yards and 10 touchdowns ... Had 28 career interceptions with eight returned for TDs ... Played for Coach Lloyd McDonald at Akinson Country High.

PERSONAL -Born Dec. 31, 1982 ... Sociology Major. 

OFFENSIVE STATISTICS
Rushing	G	TC	Yds.	Avg.	TD	LG
2001	12	2	24	12.0	0	18
2002	9	2	11	5.5	0	15
2003	11	4	-5	-1.2	0	5
TOTAL	32	8	30	3.8	0	18


Receiving	G	Rec.	Yds.	Avg.	TD	LG
2001	12	18	234	13.0	0	58
2002	9	8	73	9.1	1	25
2003	11	24	442	18.4	2	98
TOTAL	32	50	749	15.0	3	98


Year	KOR	Yds.	Avg.	TD	LR
2001	1	12	12.0	0	12
2002	8	212	26.5	1	95
2003	22	422	19.2	0	74
TOTAL	31	646	20.8	1	95


Year	PR	Yds.	Avg.	TD	LR
2001	0	0	0.0	0	-
2002	4	-4	-1.0	0	10
2003	0	0	0.0	0	-
TOTAL	4	-4	-1.0	0	10



DEFENSIVE STATISTICS
Year	G	UT	AT	TT	TFL	Sacks	FR	Int.	PBU
2002	9	11	8	19	0.5-0	0	1	0	0
TOTAL	9	11	8	19	0.5-0	0	1	0	0
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