Morehouse has named former Atlanta Falcons veteran and NFL wide receiver Terance Mathis as the new head football coach.
“It is my pleasure to extend a warm welcome to our new head football coach, former NFL pro and college football Hall of Famer, Terance Mathis, a leader who embodies the spirit of teamwork, dedication, and excellence,” Morehouse College president, Dr. David A. Thomas said in a statement on Friday. “I look forward to watching Coach Mathis take our program to new heights and establishing a winning football culture within Morehouse College athletics.”
Morehouse Athletics Director, Harold Ellis, who joined his alma mater last August, also shared his excitement as he welcomed Mathis to the Maroon Tigers.
“We are in a season of change and enhancement within Morehouse athletics. The college is known for producing some of the most skilled and gifted professionals across all industries, and that same spirit of excellence must be established within our athletic programs,” Ellis stated.
Morehouse is Mathis’ first head coaching job at the collegiate level.
Mathis was an All-American wide receiver out of the University of New Mexico that set records there by becoming the first player with over 250 receptions, 4,000 receiving yards, and 6,000 yards total.
He was taken in the sixth round of the 1990 NFL Draft by the New York Jets. Mathis played four seasons with the Jets before transitioning to the Atlanta Falcons and becoming a breakout star. He finished with 111 receptions for 1,342 receiving yards and scored 11 touchdowns becoming just the eighth player in NFL history to surpass the 100-catch mark in
his first season. He played eight seasons with the Falcons, including the 1998 Super Bowl season when he caught 64 passes for 1,136 years and averaged 17.8 yards per catch average. He ended his pro career with 689 receptions for 8,809 receiving yards and 63 touchdowns.
After his NFL career, Mathis ventured into coaching, serving as the offensive coordinator for Savannah State in 2011 and 2012. He has also served as head coach at Pinecrest Academy in Cumming, Georgia. Pinecrest went 7-25 under Mathis and he was not retained after the 2019 season. His last known coaching stops were at high schools Blessed Trinity in 2020 and Fellowship Christian in 2021.
Off the field in 1996, he founded the Terance Mathis Foundation, displaying his commitment to education and community service. Mathis’s outstanding achievements were recognized when he was selected as the Atlanta Falcons’ “Man of the Year” in 1998
Morehouse has been in search for a head football coach for the second time in less than a year, since parting ways with alum Gerard Wilcher after just a single season. Wilcher went 1-9 with his lone win against Atlanta neighbor and SIAC rival Clark Atlanta.