Five-star Texas A&M offensive line commit gets torched on social media for awkward hat ritual

As temperatures continue to warm and we get closer to summer, college football recruiting excitement is starting to reach its peak.

Part of that is because we’re still a long way from college football being played, but also because a lot of the big dominoes on the recruiting board are starting to fall.

Many casual fans may not think of late spring and early summer as big months for five-stars to make verbal commitments, but if you look at recent commitment activity for the 2027 class, you’ll see a ton of top-tier talent already off the market.

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A perfect example of this would be Friday afternoon, then not one but two The five-star talents in the trenches have announced where they will play in college for the next three or four years (or until someone comes along with a better offer), but I digress.

Five-star defensive lineman David Folorunsho chose the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, while five-star offensive lineman Mark Matthews chose Texas A&M as his landing spot, and today we’ll discuss the latter.

Matthews performed a hat ritual that has drawn the ire of many fans in college football through the ages.

Try to get through this process without getting bored.

If you’re familiar with me, you know my thoughts on the “hat games” that high school students play.

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Call me an old man yelling at the cloud, but would it kill these kids just to announce where they’re going, put on the hat, and take a photo?

Of course, I’m not the biggest Miami fan, given my admiration for the Gators, but I hate to see someone fake a hat just on principle.

Mohamed Toure of the Miami Hurricanes reacts after being stopped in the second quarter against the Ohio State Buckeyes during the College Football Playoff Quarterfinal at the 90th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic at AT&T Stadium on December 31, 2025 in Arlington, Texas. (Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

Matthews was one-time Fort Lauderdale high school powerhouse St. Given that St. Thomas Aquinas is just down the road from Coral Gables, he was considered a lock to go to Miami.

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But the Aggies have started to gain momentum in recent months and have been on a roll to fulfill his commitment, which may explain the saltiness of Canes fans about his announcement antics.

In their defense, it looks like they weren’t the only ones who thought Matthews’ commitment ceremony was a bit much.

On the one hand, he seems to be coping with the situation for Canes fans.

There’s no way you can lose the five-star offensive lineman who lives less than an hour away from campus. Homegrown talent like Mark Matthews doesn’t grow on trees.

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Miami Hurricanes head coach Mario Cristobal looks on before the game against the Syracuse Orange at the JMA Wireless Dome on November 30, 2024 in Syracuse, NY. (Rich Barnes-Imagn Images)

But on the other hand, I think Miami fans will also take solace in the fact that this guy may not be a “culture fit.”

I don’t make the rules when it comes to handling recruiting losses; I just follow them.