KNOXVILLE – Matt Underwood always will remember his first team meeting after he took the job as Jackson Christian School’s football coach.
He may not remember what the weather was that day two years ago, how nervous he felt before the meeting or the exact words he might have said. Instead, Underwood likely won’t forget an unexpected display of respect from then-sophomore star Drae Bowles.
“The first day that I was able to speak with the team, he came up to me afterward and he was actually the first one that came to me,” said Underwood, who coached Georgia receiver Marlon Brown at Harding Academy in Memphis prior to his move east up Interstate 40. “He gave me a big hug and told me he loved me, which is really unusual for a kid to say that, especially at the time never having been around somebody like that. Some people might say that was fake, but after getting to know Drae, I think that was honest and he felt that way just because I was now part of his family here.
“He’s always been that way since me and the rest of the coaching staff has gotten here. He’s that way with all of us. I definitely remember that, and I always will [because] that was a special memory for me.”
Ask just about anyone about Bowles, and you’ll probably get a similar story. Underwood knew about Bowles’ football abilities from scouting him while at Harding, but he’s learned more about the 6-foot-1, 198-pound receiver’s personality since taking the job with the Eagles after the 2009 season. Personable, kind and mature, Underwood said.