Utah’s Jada Matthews sent a text to her brother, Chris Matthews, on Monday night reminding him he better not change with all the Super Bowl press he has been receiving recently.
Chris was one of the star players of Super Bowl XLIX, catching four passes for 109 yards and a touchdown after never registering an NFL catch in his career before.
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“He’s not cocky like how some other football players might be, and I texted him and said, ‘If you ever change, I will knock you right back down,’” Jada said.
Jada and Chris have the type of sibling relationship where they can compete with each other, work out together, and tell each other almost everything. They have been close ever since they were young, despite Chris being seven years older.
Jada is currently a freshman on the women’s basketball team at Utah, and Chris plays for the Seahawks. Despite their age difference, Michele Matthews, their mom, made sure they always stuck together and mentioned how it is almost scary how close they are.
Whenever they run into issues, their parents are no longer the ones they go to for help.
“They always call each other before they call the parents,” Michele said. “When they are working on situations or have problems with something or their game, they always call each other first.”
When Chris caught a touchdown from Russell Wilson right before halftime in the Super Bowl, Jada said she could not believe the announcers said her brother’s name.
“It was a great thing [when he got called up], and I was so proud of him because I knew he could do it, he just needed the opportunity,” Jada said.
Seattle ended up losing in the Super Bowl, but Jada had some words of encouragement for her brother.
“I told him how great he played and how proud I was and how it might hurt now, but it will get better,” Jada said. “And that he showed the whole world how good he is and how underrated he really was.”
Jada said his performance over the last few weeks has motivated her to do better. Chris has taught her to never give up, no matter what she is facing or what the situation might be, and to keep pushing herself further and further.
“He always tells me to go the extra mile,” Jada said. “If it were in practice, go in there early, get some shots up, and come out last and always keep working on my game, never be satisfied with what I have.”
Chris sometimes tags along when Jada is practicing, and though she is not too interested in attending his football practices, they always have a competitive spirit. She mentioned when she won her state championship, she bragged about it to him, and this year her phone rang and it was Chris saying, “Guess who’s going to the Super Bowl?”
While Jada competes with Chris on a regular basis, it is a healthy competition and she knows she can always look up to him.
“I look up to him in almost every aspect,” Jada said. “He’s very humble and no matter what, I know I can count on him to talk to him about anything. I know that he’s never going to turn his back on me.”
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