Michael Shane Matthews of Cleveland and Pascagoula, Mississippi, had the distinct honor of being Gator savior, Steve Spurrier‘s first starting quarterback. On the right arm of Shane, Darth Visor rebuilt the Gator football program. He quarterbacked the team to an SEC-best 9-2 record, but the Gators were not eligible for the SEC championship due to NCAA and school sanctions. In the following year, he led the team to a 10-2 season, 7-0 SEC, and the Gators’ first official SEC Championship. He was first-team All-SEC in ’90, ’91, and ’92. He finished hiscollege career 722/1,202 attempts for 9,287 yards and 74 touchdowns, was a team captain and team MVP. He led the SEC in passing for three consecutive years (1990–1992), and finished with a career efficiency rating of 137.6. When he left UF, Matthews topped the Gator charts in rating, completions, attempts, yards, and touchdowns. He was inducted as a Gator Great into the University of Florida Athletic Association Hall of Fame in 2002.
Year GP Comp Att % Yds TD INT TD% INT% Y/G Y/A RAT
1990 229 378 60.6 2952 23 12 6.1 3.2 268.4 7.8 139.9
1991 218 361 60.4 3130 28 18 7.8 5.0 284.5 8.7 148.8
1992 275 463 59.4 3205 23 16 5.0 3.5 267.1 6.9 127.0
