After producing one of the most improved units on Texas State’s team and a 2017 All-Sun Belt Conference Second-Team offensive lineman, Eric Mateos is in his second season as the offensive line coach at Texas State.
Mateos came to Texas State after serving as a tight ends coach at LSU in 2016 and helping to coach the offensive lines at LSU and Arkansas, where he worked alongside two of the best offensive line coaches in the country in Jeff Grimes and Sam Pittman, respectively.
He began his coaching career as an assistant offensive line coach at Southwest Baptist in 2011 before serving a one-year stint as the offensive line coach and recruiting coordinator at Hutchinson Community College. There, he tutored the top junior college offensive guard prospect in the country and the Blue Dragons broke 15 school records on offense.
He was a graduate assistant under Pittman at Arkansas for the next three years when the Razorbacks surrendered the fewest sacks in the SEC each of the three seasons. The Razorback offensive line also produced a First-Team All-American and two Freshmen All-Americans in his first season. They were the only school in the nation to have two 1,000-yard rushers in 2014.
In 2015, Arkansas finished second in the SEC in scoring offense (40.2 points per game) and total offense (456.8 yards per game). When Pittman left for Georgia, Mateos served as an interim offensive line coach in the Liberty Bowl and the Razorbacks gained 569 yards on offense.
In 2016, he joined LSU’s staff as an offensive line graduate assistant before being named tight ends coach midway into the season by Ed Orgeron and helping lead the Tigers to a victory over Louisville in the Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl. The three tight ends combined for 27 catches for 420 yards and three touchdowns.
Mateos transitioned into coaching after playing two years at Southwest Baptist, where he was the starting center and team captain in 2009 and 2010. In his first season, the Bearcats ranked fifth nationally in total offense after averaging 482 yards per game. The following year, Southwest Baptist ranked third in the nation with 504.7 yards of total offense.
Mateos earned his bachelor’s degree in public relations at Southwest Baptist in 2011.
