PITTSBURGH — Hollis Mathis is returning to where it all started.
The former Penn Hills star grew up just in Pittsburgh and was a huge Steelers fan. This weekend, he earned a rookie minicamp tryout and had the chance to showcase that he should be on an NFL roster.
For Mathis, it is a dream come true. He used to put himself onto Steelers teams in Madden, hoping this would be reality one day. For at least two days, it was for Mathis.
“It’s always been a dream of mine. This is definitely dream come true, pretty much in every way imaginable,” Mathis said. “I’m soaking it all in. Trying to learn as much as I can and trying to get a lot better in these few days.”
For more Steelers connections, Mathis knew head coach Mike Tomlin growing up. Mathis and Tomlin’s son, Dino, played on the same 7-on-7 team, so Mathis knew Coach Tomlin as Mr. Tomlin. Now, he got to see who he was behind the scenes.
“I learned that this organization is pretty much what it looks like from the outside. It’s a great organization,” Mathis said. “A lot of very smart people teaching a great game. I’m just blessed and honored to even be around. So I’m just happy to get better every day and try to learn what I can… His oldest, Dino, we played sports against each other for a very long time. I always saw Coach Tomlin as Mr. Tomlin. Dino’s dad. It was very cool to finally be in a space to see him and call him ‘Coach’ and have that kind of relationship with him.”
Mathis played at the same college Tomlin did, too, at William and Mary. He played an array of positions with the Tribe. Mathis was a quarterback, running back, and wide receiver. He was just the second player in NCAA history to finish his career with more than 1000 passing yards, rushing yards, and receiving yards.
At his pro day, Mathis ran a 4.59 40-yard dash and projects likely as a wide receiver. Mathis’ best tests were his explosiveness drils, where he posted a 36.5-inch vertical and a 10-foot-10-inch broad jump.
A 6-foot-1, 174-pound player, Mathis has a trait in versatility that no one else at the camp will have. His quarterback background helps him at wide receiver.
“I think it just allows me to pick up the offense really, really quick. It allows me to see things from a different perspective. I understand windows. I understand, you know, how to be quarterback friendly. I know what the quarterback is looking for on a play,” Mathis said.
Mathis is hoping those two days parlayed into a contract. After Saturday’s practice, he was out on the field for an extra 25 minutes working with undrafted free agent Roc Taylor.
“I don’t really care that much about the aesthetics or the show of it all. I am honestly completely bought into getting better,” Mathis said. “Roc here is an unbelievable receiver, and I’ve noticed that he’s really good at the craft. So we were able to build a relationship. I wanted to see if he could help me out with some stuff. And if we could have did it in the locker room, away from everybody’s eyes, we would have, but there’s not enough space, and so we just wanted to get a couple extra reps.”
Mathis won the PIAA 5A Title with Penn Hills in 2018, a loaded team that included former Penn State standout and Buffalo Bills cornerback Daequan Hardy. Now, Mathis hopes he can achieve his own NFL dreams.
