Terance Mathis

Infobox NFLretired
caption=Mathis celebrating after scoring a touchdown.
position=Wide Receiver
number=81
birthdate=birth date and age|1967|6|7
Detroit, Michigan
debutyear=1990
finalyear=2002
draftyear=1990
draftround=6
draftpick=141
college=New Mexico
teams=
* New York Jets (1990-1993)
* Atlanta Falcons (1994-2001)
* Pittsburgh Steelers (2002)
stat1label=Receptions
stat1value=689
stat2label=Receiving Yards
stat2value=8,809
stat3label=Touchdowns
stat3value=63
nfl=MAT235065
highlights=
* 1x Pro Bowl selection (1994)
* 1x All-Pro selection (1994)
HOF=
CollegeHOF=

Terance Mathis (born June 7, 1967, in Detroit, Michigan) was a Pro Bowl wide receiver in the NFL. Drafted in 1990 by the New York Jets, he played the majority of his career with the Atlanta Falcons. He last played in the NFL in 2002 with the Pittsburgh Steelers, then retired in 2004. Currently, he is second in career two-point conversions with six, behind Marshall Faulk's seven.

Family

Mathis grew up as the son of Carole Mahone, his father died when he was six months old. His mother is also a breast cancer survivor, having beaten the disease two months before Mathis played in Super Bowl XXXIII. He and his wife Arendia have a daughter named Terae and a son Terance Jr. Terance also has three other children Sydney, Eric, and Vanessa who just appeared in the Cherish music video "Unappreciated".

High School & College

Mathis attended Redan High School and University of New Mexico, where he played both football and basketball. In 1989, he became New Mexico's first consensus All-American after setting a Division I record for most receiving yards. He also became the first player to have more than 250 receptions, 4,000 receiving yards, and 6,000 yards total.

NFL

After Mathis was drafted by the Jets in 1990, he was used as a punt and kick returner. He had 43 kickoff returns for 787 yards, including one touchdown. He also had 19 receptions for 245 yards that season. The following year, he played in all sixteen games for the Jets, starting one. He had 28 receptions for 329 yards and one touchdown. He led the team in kickoff returns, piling up 599 yards. Mathis played with the Jets until 1994, starting two more games and scoring four touchdowns total.

In 1994, Mathis signed as an unrestricted free agent with the Atlanta Falcons. That season, he set a club record by catching 111 passes, becoming the eighth player in the history of the NFL to exceed the 100-catch mark in one season. He also ranked in third in the NFL that season in touchdown receptions. He played on the NFC Pro Bowl squad at the end of the season. He had his second consecutive 1000-yard season the following year despite missing the only two games of his career due to an injury. In 1996, Mathis caught for 771 yards to give him a career total of 3000 yards.

In 1998, Mathis made his first post-season appearance for the Falcons, and made a three-yard touch down catch for the Falcons in Super Bowl XXXIII. He also led the team in receptions in that game, making seven for eighty-five yards. The following season, he passed Andre Rison as the club's all-time reception leader. Two years later, he passed Rison on the team's all-time touchdown list. After the season, he was released from the Falcons, and signed with the Steelers. He did not start a game, but had two touchdown receptions and had 218 reception yards. After he was not re-signed, he retired from the NFL.

He holds Falcons career records in receptions (573), touchdown receptions (57), and receiving yards (7,349).

Charity

Mathis was selected as the NFL's "Man of the Year" in 1998 for his charity work. In 1996, he founded the "Terance Loves Children" foundation, now known as the Terance Mathis Foundation.

NASCAR

In June 2005, Mathis announced the formation of his own NASCAR team, Victory Motorsports, with Carl Long and Morty Buckles as scheduled drivers. In June 2006, it had been announced Mathis had acquired R&J Racing, but that deal fell through.

External links

* [http://web.archive.org/web/20021030141929/www.pittsburghsteelers.com/team/playerbio.cfm?player_id=5711 Pittsburghsteelers.com bio]
* [http://www.nfl.com/players/playerpage/1189 NFL.com stats]
* [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/nfl/1998/playoffs/news/1999/01/29/mathis_package/ Falcon's Mathis using Super Bowl week to make impact.]