Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral had college football fans asking "Who is this kid?" left and right during the first month of the 2021 college football season.
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The reason? Nine-hundred ninety-seven passing yards, nine passing touchdowns, zero interceptions, 158 rushing yards and 5 scores on the ground in three winning efforts. Heisman talk swept the airwaves while Mississippi established itself as one of the country's most electric offenses.
Corral came back to Earth as the season went on — finishing with 3,349 passing yards, 614 rushing yards and 39 total touchdowns — but led the Rebels to a 10-2 regular season record — the program's wins most since 2015 — and a Sugar Bowl appearance against Baylor. He wound up finishing in seventh in Heisman Trophy voting.
Corral was able to put his offensive skillset on display under head coach Lane Kiffin. Now, the next item on his to-do list is waiting to hear where his name will be called in the 2022 NFL Draft. His parents, Peter Corral and Elizabeth Corral, will be right by his side when Roger Goodell reads his name. Just like they've always been.
Matt Corral's Parents
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The Corrals are a California family. Peter and Liz grew up in Carpinteria and attended Carpinteria High School in the mid and late '80s, where Peter was a football player. Corral's father joined the Marine Corps following graduation, and the couple got hitched in 1988.
They had three sons: Joseph, David and of course, Matt. They now reside in Ventura.
As a four-star recruit, Matt, who is of Latino heritage, had plenty of offers from thriving on the Long Beach Polytechnic High School football team. He initially committed to the University of Southern California, then to the University of Florida, before landing on Matt Luke's Ole Miss Rebels program.
The Long Beach Poly grad and 2018 U.S. Army All-American Bowl participant broke out when Kiffin took over after his redshirt freshman year. The University of Mississippi coach's high octane offense allowed him to distribute the ball all over the field with his lightning quick release. He also completed 69.4 percent of his passes in the final two years of his college career under Kiffin. Naturally, Peter and Liz were regulars at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford to support their son.
They traveled to Matt's last home game against Vanderbilt in style thanks to Poison lead singer and reality TV star Bret Michaels. Michaels, who has a history of performing gestures of veterans, surprised the Corrals by offering them a flight on his private plane.
"I wanted to surprise the Corrals, as they are great family friends," Michaels said in a press release. "Knowing the chaos of holiday air travel, I wanted to ensure that Liz and Peter could make it to what may be their son's last home game at Ole Miss. So, I was excited to offer this gesture to two incredible parents who we are honored to call good friends."
Thanks for popcorn 🍿 @Lane_Kiffin pic.twitter.com/5Iye8BLprf
— Liz Corral (@lcorral03) October 9, 2021
Matt, who's the third-ranked quarterback in the draft according to ESPN's Mel Kiper, likes to keep his private life close to the chest, but Liz consistently posts about her son and his accomplishments on social media. She and the rest of the Corral family will certainly celebrate when his name is called in Las Vegas.
