Matt Matheny
Year Inducted: 2024
As a quarterback at North Iredell High School, Matt Matheny led the Raiders to their lone 10-0 football regular season and would later move on to an ongoing successful college basketball coaching career. A 1988 graduate of North Iredell, Matheny was a three-sport athlete (football, basketball, tennis) for the Raiders. In addition to passing for over 1,200 yards and 10 touchdowns, he was a three-time all-conference performer on the tennis courts. Academically, he ranked fourth in a graduating class of 287.
During his college days, he lettered four years as a quarterback and wide receiver for Davidson College’s football team and two years as a point guard for the men’s basketball squad before graduating in 1993 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in history. He served as a team captain for both programs as a senior.
Following a brief pro football career in Germany, Matheny returned to his alma mater as an assistant basketball coach under legendary head coach Bob McKillop. After a 10-year (1993-2003) stint as an assistant coach, he was promoted to associate head coach in 2003. Matheny was instrumental in recruiting the best player in Davidson men's basketball history, four-time NBA Champion and two-time league MVP Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors. He recruited and coached Curry during his time on staff, which led to Davidson’s memorable run to the NCAA Tournament’s Elite Eight in 2007-08.
In 2009, Matheny was named the head men’s basketball coach at Elon University, where he remains the winningest Division I head coach for the Phoenix. During his tenure at Elon (2009-19), Matheny guided the Phoenix to 151 wins, a SoCon North Division Regular Season Crown, and the first-ever postseason berth and 20-win season as a Division I program. In 2013, he was named the Southern Conference Coach of the Year and a Hugh Durham Award finalist after leading Elon to a 21-14 mark. Under Matheny’s guidance, the Phoenix garnered two Scholar-Athletes of the Year, a Freshman of the Year, almost 20 all-conference recognitions, 24 all-academic selections and four CoSIDA Academic All-Americans.
Matheny, who returned to Davidson in May of 2022 for his second stint on the men’s basketball staff, is the all-time winningest assistant in Davidson history with 341 victories to go along with 10 Southern Conference Division titles, five SoCon tournament championships, five NCAA tournament appearances and four postseason NIT trips. Davidson produced 10 campaigns of 20 or more victories, three undefeated Southern Conference regular seasons, 27 All-SoCon players and six SoCon All-Freshman selections.
