Reginald Levi Mathis (born March 18, 1956) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

who played two seasons with the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He was selected by the Saints in the second round of the

1979 NFL draft The 1979 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held May 3–4, 1979, at the Waldorf Astoria ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

at Navarro College and the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma, United States. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two territories became the ...

. Mathis was also a member of the

New Jersey Generals The New Jersey Generals were a franchise of the United States Football League (USFL) established in 1982 to begin play in the spring and summer of 1983. The team played three seasons from 1983 to 1985, winning 31 regular season games and losing ...

and San Antonio Gunslingers of the

United States Football League The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...

(USFL), the

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division (CFL), East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home game ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

(CFL), and the Detroit Drive of the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 Arena Football League season, 1987 season, making it the third longest-runnin ...

(AFL).

Early life and college

Reginald Levi Mathis was born on March 18, 1956, in

Chattanooga, Tennessee Chattanooga ( ) is a city in Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located along the Tennessee River and borders Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the south. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, it is Tennessee ...

. He attended Notre Dame High School in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Mathis was recruited by Bobby Proctor to play

for the

Oklahoma Sooners The Oklahoma Sooners are the college athletics in the United States , athletic teams that represent the University of Oklahoma, located in Norman, Oklahoma, Norman. The 19 men's and women's varsity teams are called the "Sooners", a reference to ...

of the

. However, he did not qualify academically and had to play his first season at Navarro College in 1974. He then transferred to Oklahoma. He

redshirted Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

the 1975 season and was a three-year

letterman Letterman may refer to: * Letterman (sports), a classification of high school or college athlete in the United States People * David Letterman (born 1947), American television talk show host ** ''Late Night with David Letterman'', talk show that ...

from 1976 to 1978. Mathis spent time at both split end and

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...

at Oklahoma before converting to

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

in 1977. In 1976, he caught three passes for 41 yards and returned one kick for four yards. He returned one interception for 17 yards his senior year in 1978 and earned

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first-team All-

Big Eight Conference The Big Eight Conference was a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)-affiliated Division I-A college athletic association that sponsored American football, football. It was formed in January 1907 as the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate ...

honors.

Professional career

Mathis was selected by the

in the second round, with the 38th overall pick, of the

. He played in all 16 games for the Saints during his rookie year in 1979. He started all 16 games in 1980, intercepting one pass for 15 yards, as the Saints finished the year with a 1–15 record. Mathis was placed on injured reserve the next year on August 31, 1981, and missed the entire season. He was released by the Saints on June 24, 1982. Mathis signed with the

of the

(USFL) on November 3, 1982. He retired on March 25, 1983. On January 18, 1985, Mathis was traded to the San Antonio Gunslingers. He played for the Gunslingers during the 1985 season, returning one kickoff for 24 yards. He was released in 1985. In late July 1985, Mathis signed a 21-day trial with the

of the

. On August 10, it was reported he had been activated off of the 21-day trial. Overall, Mathis played in five games for the Tiger-Cats in 1985 and recovered one fumble for 19 yards. He signed a three-year contract with the Tiger-Cats in April 1986. He was released during final roster cuts in June 1986. Mathis signed with the Detroit Drive of the

(AFL) in 1988. He was an

offensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line (OL), while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line ( ...

defensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line (OL), while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line (D ...

during his time in the AFL as the league player under ironman rules. He played in seven games for the Drive during the 1988 season, totaling seven solo tackles, one assisted tackle, two sacks, one fumble recovery, and one blocked kick. The Drive finished the season with a 9–3 record, and won ArenaBowl II against the Chicago Bruisers by a score of 24–13. Mathis appeared in all four games for the Drive in 1989, recording six solo tackles, two assisted tackles, seven sacks, one forced fumble, and one pass breakup. The team finished the year with a 3–1 record and beat the Pittsburgh Gladiators in ArenaBowl III by a score of 39–26. Mathis was named first-team All-Arena for his performance during the 1989 season. He played in two games in 1990, totaling four solo tackles, one assisted tackle, one sack, and one blocked kick. The Drive won ArenaBowl IV against the Dallas Texans 51–27.

Post-playing career

Mathis coached semi-pro and indoor football after his playing career. In 2006, he graduated from Oklahoma.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mathis, Reggie Living people 1956 births American football linebackers American football defensive ends American football offensive linemen American football defensive linemen American football wide receivers American football tight ends Navarro Bulldogs football players Oklahoma Sooners football players New Orleans Saints players New Jersey Generals players San Antonio Gunslingers players Hamilton Tiger-Cats players Detroit Drive players Players of American football from Chattanooga, Tennessee 20th-century African-American sportsmen Indoor American football coaches Coaches of American football from Tennessee