I talked to Division I basketball player Anthony Mathis about the impact college athletics has had on his life

By: Matt Dzwilewski

 

Anthony Mathis rolls out of bed, his body still sore from the grueling two hour practice the night before. He strolls across campus at the University of New Mexico and heads to his early morning class. Mathis’s days consist of early mornings, weight training, practice, film, and rigorous college courses. He lives the frantic life of a Division I student athlete, and for Mathis, a Junior on the basketball team, the opportunity is everything that he had ever hoped for.

His mother, Sarah, raised him along with his two siblings by herself in Portland, Oregon. When he was three she bought him a miniature basketball hoop, and the young Mathis fell in love. At age six he joined his first club team and developed a close relationship with Coach Terry Pritchard. Being naturally gifted, he enjoyed the feeling of control when playing basketball. Off the court, circumstances out of his control dominated his life.

Battling with unemployment, Sarah constantly struggled raising three kids alone. When Mathis was 10, the family was evicted. Mathis recalls being outside his apartment when his mom started crying, “I was like dang, this is real. We really have nowhere to go.” After spending a few days living in a shelter, they moved into Sarah’s parent’s home.

Seeing the unstable environment Anthony was living in, Coach Terry Pritchard offered to take Anthony in until Sarah could get back on her feet. Anthony thrived under the guidance of Terry, a former college athlete and director of the local basketball program. A year later, Sarah’s boyfriend received a job offer in Wyoming, where she moved with him and her two other kids. Mathis, The Pritchards, and Sarah, mutually agreed that Anthony should stay in Portland, where he would develop his skills under Terry, with hopes to attend a university on a full scholarship. Though an extremely difficult decision, Sarah knew they made the right choice, “I knew that was where he needed to be in order to get to where he wanted to be, and that he wouldn’t have had the same opportunities if he moved to Wyoming with us.” With a dream of a scholarship, Mathis trained nearly every day for the next four years.

Now entering his third year of college basketball, both Mathis and his mom acknowledge he wouldn’t be able to attend college if it weren’t for his scholarship. Mathis is extremely grateful for the Pritchards. He realizes that if he hadn’t stayed, he wouldn’t have become the player he is today. With the new season right around the corner, Mathis is excited to prove what he can do in his third year and hopes he can help his team reach the NCAA tournament.