Betts: Matt Brown relishing senior season at USF

Terriers grad Matt Brown (Oakville, Ont.) is trying to savor every moment on the field in his senior season with the University of South Florida. Photo: Matt Betts

March 15, 2025

By Matt Betts

Canadian Baseball Network

Time sure does fly.

Most high school players hear a variation of that phrase before embarking on their college baseball careers.

And right now, University of South Florida right-hander Matt Brown (Oakville, Ont.) gets it.

“It’s definitely gone by fast,” Brown said following a 5-2 USF loss to Maryland on Friday night.

“Every fall feels like it’s the longest thing ever but then once the season gets here, it just flies. Each year I think gets faster and faster.”

Brown’s journey has taken him from Frontier Community College in Illinois to St. Petersburg College in Florida and finally down the road to Tampa at USF.

He recalls one specific moment that stands out on the mound that he’ll remember forever.

His sophomore season at SPC, he faced the undefeated No. 1 College of Central Florida and helped his Titans pull off the upset thanks to 6 1/3 innings of work.

A core memory coming from junior college is no coincidence, as those years were critical to Brown’s development as a person and player.

So much so that if he had to do it all again, he’d take the same route.

In fact, he admits he simply wouldn’t have been ready out of high school to jump to the Division I level at a school the calibre of USF.

“The depth,” he said of the difference between junior college and Division I.

“In JUCO, you usually have two to three guys that are really good and the rest are okay. Here, everyone is really good. I definitely think JUCO helped me a lot, especially maturing and getting better each year. It gave me a chance to play.”

Studying exercise science with a graduation date set for the fall, the workload doesn’t stop on the field. Taking six courses this semester, while playing a travel intensive schedule, has taught him to develop the time management skills needed to be a successful student-athlete.

With only one shot to play college baseball, there’s always things players might do differently with the knowledge they have after the fact. For Brown, it would be to stay present.

“I’d try to live in the moment more,” he said.

“A lot of the times I was thinking ahead way too much and it took away from my performance on the field. Now, this might be it so I’ve been trying to treat each game like it could be my last.”

A former Ontario Terrier, his advice to his younger self is also simple.

“Remember to have fun,” Brown said.

“I think, especially in college, you kind of forget that. You’re playing to play as well as you can, you forget to just have fun. Just remember, keep it easy. Don’t stress too much about anything.”