A Crimson Tide Moment with Kent Matthes
1/17/2007 12:00:00 AM | General
Bama Gymnast Jacqueline Shealy spends a few moments interviewing right-fielder Ken Matthes. The following interview took place on January 15, 2007 at Bama FCA's weekly huddle.
JS: Where were you born and raised?
KM: I was born in Florence, SC. My dad was a professor at a university there. We moved to Orlando when I was one.
JS: Tell us about your family.
KM: I have an older sister who is 26. My parents like it here in Tuscaloosa as much as I do. My sister is a professional nanny and she works with a number of Atlanta Braves families like John Smoltz, and Paul Byrd. It's been a real great opportunity for her. My dad and my mom's brother were roommates at the University of Miami where they played football.
JS: What sports did you play in high school and what was your best?
KM: We were a big soccer family. I loved soccer, but there wasn't much opportunity. My dream as a kid was to play in the NBA, but I needed to grow about six more inches to do that. I played basketball, football, and baseball my freshman year. After that I only played baseball.
JS: Outside of required reading for class what was the last book you read?
KM: Right now I am reading a book called "The Journey To Desire." It talks about the desire to seize the opportunity and to desire greatness in life rather than just going through the motions.
JS: What was the last movie you attended at the theatre?
KM: I saw "We Are Marshall" and I would recommend it. It is a good movie.
JS: Tell us about your journey to Bama and how you ended up here.
KM: I actually started taking unofficial visits when our family would go places.When we would be out visiting family or traveling, we would stop at a school, visit with the coaches, and look at the facilities. I was in Tuscaloosa the summer after my freshman year visiting some friends and that was the first time I saw Tuscaloosa. I was really impressed with the people and I had an opportunity to meet with the coaches. It was a tough decision to come this far away from home when I could have gone to school a lot closer to home. I feel like the Lord led me here. First semester last year I was really questioning why I was here and what my purpose was. God has opened a lot of doors and has made it clear why I am here.
JS: What has been the highlight of your career since you arrived at Bama?
KM: I hit my first homerun at the SEC Baseball Tournament last year with my parents in attendance. It was against LSU which had some of my high school rivals on the team. That made it even sweeter. There was a huge crowd and it was an intense game. Just winning the SEC last year was great. We had unbelievable team chemistry and just being around those guys my freshman year was awesome! I'll never forget that.
JS: How and when did your walk with Jesus Christ begin?
KM: I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior when I was eleven. My granddad is one of the most awesome people I know. He volunteers twice a week in a jail ministry. He is an eighty-three year-old man and he goes in there with murderers and tells them about the gospel. I really admire him for that. He actually led me to Christ when I was eleven. He was the counselor at church that I met with when I went forward in church.
JS: What is God teaching you right now?
KM: I took my roommate to the hospital yesterday and the emergency room was packed. As I looked around at all the people with various problems I began to think of how much God has blessed me. There were wives and mothers crying about all the stuff going on in that room. I began to think that God has blessed me so much with health. A moment like that really puts things in perspective.
