Questions about Matt Landers began in February, as soon as the former Georgia Bulldog announced he was transferring to Toledo.
The 6-foot-5 wide receiver drips with dynamism. A member of Georgia’s celebrated 2017 recruiting class, Landers was projected to wreak havoc for defenses in the Southeastern Conference. But he only caught 12 passes for 132 yards and one touchdown in 25 games.
A change of scenery for the St. Petersburg, Fla., native, and a Toledo offense that’s produced multiple NFL wide receivers over the past 15 years, would result in a cornucopia of yards and touchdowns. Throughout the spring and summer, UT fans were enraptured by the possibilities.
Instead, Landers had two receptions for 28 yards through the first eight games as the Rockets stumbled to a 4-4 record.
“One thing that’s unfair to Matt is not having spring practice and being injured [shoulder] and coming back mid-summer and being thrown into preseason practice,” Toledo coach Jason Candle said. “The guys that have a general understanding of the offense have a leg up on you. He’s fought like crazy to continue staying in there mentally and practicing hard.”
The tenacity paid off last week on a two-touchdown night for Landers, who caught five passes for 150 yards against Eastern Michigan. He showed off his speed, elite athleticism, and playmaking ability each time he possessed the football, but none more so than on an 80-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter.
Every bit of the former high school standout that Georgia fans were excited about and the tantalizing skills that Toledo fans went gaga over was on display.
“I really just waited on my opportunity. When it came, I took advantage of it,” Landers said. “The whole season I’ve just been grinding. I’ll just keep putting in the work and staying humble.”
Bryce Mitchell’s career-ending ACL tear created space for Landers, who sprinted through the door and went all the way to the end zone. The quarterback situation was uncertain when Landers first stepped foot on campus, but that didn’t stop Dequan Finn, now the entrenched starter, from exchanging phone numbers with Landers and scheduling meetings to run routes and get their timing down.
A target the size of James Harden is a quarterback’s best friend.
“He’s a big guy. You can’t miss him,” Finn said of Landers. “Our connection is getting closer and closer. If something is miscommunicated or we’re not on the same page, I talk it out with him. But I think our connection is getting better. That’s a good sign.”
The 2021 season is entering crunch time, but it’s hard not to peek ahead to 2022 and wonder what the UT offense could resemble. Most of the team returns, and if the offense can find stability, with Finn’s continued progression and the steady emergence of Landers, perhaps the numbers that everybody expected this season were just delayed by one year.
“It’s a huge stepping stone for us as an offense,” Finn said. “I thought we had our best week of preparation. It obviously carried over to the game [against Eastern Michigan]. When we have those types of days, you just give it to the playmakers and let them make plays.”
Who better to hear from than a member of Toledo’s secondary who sees it every day in practice?
“Matt’s a beast,” safety Tycen Anderson said. “He just needed to learn the playbook. You saw what he did last week. He’s going to continue to do that. He’s a great player.”
First Published November 10, 2021, 2:08 p.m.
