Signing Day Capsule: Matt Wile

Matt Wile was the thirteenth commitment in the Wolverines 2011 recruiting class. Get the story of his recruitment and learn more about this Army All-American special-teams awardee.

Matt Wile.
Kicker 6-2/210
Francis W. Parker HS (San Diego, CA)
NR: *** - Position Rank: 4

Scout.com Player Video
Kicking Highlights – Watch Video.
Army All-American selection – Watch Video

His Recruiting Story
The kicking game at Michigan has been abysmal, fans often found themselves shaking their heads or closing their eyes during kicks for fear of balls going out-of-bounds or wide right. With the coaching change at Michigan one bounce to go the Wolverines way was the fact Coach Hoke was already on kicker Matt Wile a standout from San Diego. During his junior year he hit 9-of-12 field goals with a long of 48. On kickoffs Matt averaged a touchback rating of 89.9% - 91 of his 101 kicks never left the end zone and four hit or parted the field goal uprights. Wile handled all the kicking duties at Francis parker to include punting, place-kicking, and kick offs. His diverse ability brought coaches calling. He is a stellar student and has offers from Air force, Nebraska, Washington, and of course San Diego State. However the commit is also a fourth generation Michigan Man, and the opportunity to be so was too much to resist.

During Wile’s senior season his kickoffs were averaging a 4.0 second hang time, his punting average was 43 yards, and he belted 10-of-13 field goal attempts through the wickets including a long of 49 yards. While playing in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl he punted six times for an average of 41 yards, pinning the East within their 20-yard line two times earning him special teams recognition.

His Commitment Comments
“When I got here it just kind of felt right. The facilities were amazing. The new indoor facility is pretty cool. I really just enjoyed the coaches and all the players on the team was really nice.”

GoBlueWolverine Commentary
Matt Wile from San Diego (Calif.) Francis Parker is built a little more like a linebacker, but is actually a kicker. According to Francis Parker Coach Ortega he thinks that Wile could punt, kick off and place kick at the next level - Bryan Munson. This is a kicker who will come up and hit you on a return, and has made multiple tackles on special teams. He has a powerful leg and his techniques is consistent He has a very smooth rhythm in his kicking motion and is extremely accurate, so much so that he has only missed two extra points in his 76 attempts. No doubt he will come and immediately compete for the place-kicking and kickoff team position.