Matt Corral regrets not sticking with his Florida commitment

On3 imageby:Nick de la Torre•07/27/22•

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Once upon a team, several coaches ago, Matt Corral was a Florida Gator. Corral was a member of the 2018 recruiting class. He committed to Jim McElwain and his staff. That 2018 recruiting class was well on its way to being one of the best in recent years.

That all changed when McElwain erroneously reported that he, his players, and his staff had received death threats. When asked to give the administration proof, he balked. The university and McElwain negotiated a buyout and the head coach was gone before the season ended.

Even then, Corral remained committed. Gainesville was a long way away from his home but he wanted to be a Gator. When Florida hired Dan Mullen, Corral was intrigued.

Mullen has a long history of developing quarterbacks. He had coached Tim Tebow, Cam Newton, Dak Prescott, and Nick Fitzgerald. So why didn’t Corral stick with his commitment?

“I took the easy way out because I felt I could play right away,” he told the Charlotte Observer. “Knowing what I know now and trusting my instincts and trusting my work ethic, I would have went to a place that would have made me compete.”

What did the competition look like for Corral?

The Florida quarterback room was pretty deep when Corral committed. Malik Zaire was a graduate transfer, so that wouldn’t factor into Corral’s freshman season. Luke Del Rio, would be back, and so would Feleipe Franks, and Kyle Trask. Jake Allen was also a freshman.

Without Corral, Mullen would go with Feleipe Franks in 2018 and 2019. An injury to Franks would pave the way for Kyle Trask to take over. That led to a magical season in 2020.

Could Corral have overtaken Franks and Trask? Possibly.

He played in just three games his freshman year while earning a redshirt. During his junior year in 2021, he threw for 3,349 yards, rushed for 614 yards, and scored 31 total touchdowns. He was selected by the Carolina Panthers, who then traded for Baker Mayfield. Corral may have shied away from competition as a recruit but he’ll need to embrace it at the NFL.

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