FRISCO, Texas-Miami center Matt Lee has been one of the most productive linemen in college football over the past two seasons. Lee graded out as PFF’s third-highest-rated center in 2022 at UCF, and upon transferring to Miami in 2023, he anchored one of the better offensive lines in football. Despite his college success, Lee is staying grounded and is thankful for every opportunity that’s come his way.
He talked a little bit about his experience so far at the Shrine Bowl.
“It’s been a lot of fun. The whole process in itself can be stressful at times, but you just gotta stay positive about it and just be where your feet are. Be in the moment, and don’t let the million possibilities that could be or can’t be or won’t be to take any hold on you. You just gotta be where you are.”
Despite his college success, Lee isn’t thought to be among the top center group, which features Oregon’s Jackson Powers-Johnson and West Virginia’s Zack Frazier. Despite that, Lee isn’t worried about anyone else, keeping the confidence in himself and letting the chips fall where they may.
“I’m confident in myself, I don’t really try to think about everybody else. Everybody’s got enough on their plate at any given day. So that’s enough to worry about,” Lee said. “I just try to focus on myself.”
Lee was regarded as a leader for Miami last season, despite it being his only season at the school after transferring. He touched on why he thinks he’s able to connect so well and be a leader in a locker room.
“It starts with the relationship you have with other guys. Being able to have friendly and, in some cases, pretty developed relationships with guys where everybody around you can trust you now as a man. And then you couple that with trusting you on the football, knowing that, ‘hey, Matt knows what the hell is going on. You ask Matt about something mentally, Matt’s gonna know.’ And you take that in practice, when you start practicing in workouts, and you’re probably the hardest working guy out there, really busting your ass and trying to be aggressive,” Lee said. “Then you go perform well on gameday, couple all that, and just be a voice for everyone around you.”
Lee said he takes pride in being a leader, helping out his teammates, and mentoring younger players.
“I try to wear that with pride, the leadership style and the captain style that I’ve kind of developed throughout my career.”
It should be no surprise that with that leadership style and ability, that one of the players that Lee looks up to the most is Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce. Kelce is one of the ultimate leaders in the league, and like Lee, he isn’t the biggest center out there. Lee is 6’3, while Kelce is also listed at 6’3, and neither of them has a ton of weight for a center.
“Whoever’s measuring me, I’m 300, I’m 300, I’m 295, I’m not 330 pounds. I’m not 6’6. So a guy like Jason, he’s listed at like 6’2, 280, whatever he is, 287. And he’s a first-ballot football player. He’s so good at football and not just playing football but so good at being a football player. Being a leader, being the guy that people look to. He’s done it for so long at such a high level. It’s so impressive.”
Lee also got into the nuances of the center position and how important the mental side of the game is for a center.
“You’re adjusting on the fly as defenses are moving around pre-snap, and then you gotta snap the football, and then you gotta block a guy. And he might be a 340-pound nose guard right in your face. But the mental side of center is definitely what separates that position from the other positions, especially on the offensive line. And just, it’s constant communication, it’s a constant mental environment, understanding what you’re seeing on the defensive side. You’re the guy that everyone on the O-line is looking at. The center can’t look to the guard, the guard can look to the center,” Lee said.
It’s not easy being a center, and it’s certainly not easy being a good center. Kelce was able to accomplish it at a high level for 12 seasons, and Lee has been among the best in college football. All he wants is an opportunity to prove that he can play in the NFL.
“All I want is an opportunity, whatever that may entail. Whether that’s drafted or signed, whatever goes with that, I’d be grateful.”
Lee did meet with the Steelers at the Shrine Bowl.
“It was all good, I think the Steelers might have been the first one I did. But it was fun, it was good, he was cool, asked me a bunch of questions,” Lee said. “The Steelers are dope.”
Lee, who was also very involved in Miami’s NIL initiative, could very well be worth a closer look. He could improve his draft stock with a good week in Frisco and put himself closer to the top of the center class. He’s had a lot of collegiate success, and he’s hungry for a chance to prove that he can do it at the NFL level. With the Steelers likely looking to add a center to compete or replace Mason Cole this offseason, Lee is a name to watch closely as the pre-draft process unfolds.
