Most middle school quarterbacks barely muster enough arm-strength to fling a 20-yard pass down-field. LSU sophomore quarterback Matt Flynn broke his father’s finger during a passing drill in his early teenage years.
Flynn’s father, Alvin Flynn, who played quarterback at Baylor in the 1960s. He ran pass patterns that afternoon for his son like he had done many times before. But Matt zipped a pass into his father’s hands the duo will never forget.
“Matt pitched in little league [baseball] and has always been blessed with a strong arm,” Alvin said. “I know Matt remembers it. He still picks on me about breaking my finger. I guess it’s a sign of passing on the torch when your son breaks your finger throwing the ball.”
Matt said he remembers the countless hours spent working on foot skills and passing drills. But the life lessons his father, role model and mentor passed on to him will outlast them all.
 “He’s the one that taught me how to throw — taught me everything I know until I got [to LSU],” Matt said. “He’s just always been there with me. He helps me out when I’m down and has taught me a lot. I owe everything to him.”
Matt experienced the lowest point of his athletic career during his sophomore year of high school. He battled his best friend since kindergarten for the starting quarterback position. He lost the job three games into the season and saw limited action.
“I got pretty down on myself and he just taught me how to never get down like that,” Matt said.
Added Alvin: “It was a real test of fire for Matt. Matt had a really good eighth grade year and started on the JV team his freshman year. When they got into district play, the coach made a decision to go with the other guy. Matt sat on the bench and was limited to mop up duty the rest of the year.”
Alvin went through a similar experience at Baylor, which helped him explain the risks and rewards of athletics to his son. Baylor recruited him as a passing quarterback, and he started during the 1967 campaign. But a new coach came in with an offense based heavily on the run. The program recruited more athletic quarterbacks suited to that style, and Alvin rarely saw the football field afterward.
“I think it’s something all of us go through,” Alvin said. “You have great moments, those moments of elation … but there’s also the underbelly of sports. Matt was just a [high school] sophomore and one of the youngest kids in his class. It’s tough to have that taught to you at such an early age, but he fought through it.”
After the season, Matt began working with a personal trainer and gained the starting role in the spring. He rotated series with the other quarterback during the first half of the team’s opening season game in the fall, but Matt solidified his position for the rest of his high school career.
Matt’s best friend Ty Wright started at quarterback the year before. He moved to wide receiver where the two shared the memories that season.
“We had practiced passing and catching in the backyard for years,” Wright said. “It was really cool to have that experience again on a real football field. It was a special connection.”
Wright transferred to another high school in Tyler, Texas, to play baseball the next year. He now plays left field for Oklahoma State. The childhood friends still talk to each other regularly.
Now, four years later, Matt finds himself in a similar situation at LSU. Last season he saw limited time as a backup behind Marcus Randall and fellow red-shirt freshman JaMarcus Russell.
Wright said he knows from personal experience that Matt will seriously contend for the starting role this season because no one works harder in the weight room or on the field.
“Matt’s got a pretty big heart,” Wright said. “Seeing how mentally tough he is, nobody’s going to be able to just take it from him.”
But Matt’s significant playing time, despite passing for only 11 yards, in LSU’s Capital One Bowl Game loss to Iowa has his father confident about his chances of winning the starting job with spring practice in full swing.
“I felt like at that point, he was on equal footing with JaMarcus,” Alvin said.
Matt refuses to look that far ahead but recognizes a great battle that will take place in the fall with another good friend — Russell.
“We’re like brothers out there,” Matt said. “We’re helping each other out off the field in film work. And on the field we congratulate each other when we do good. It’s the spring. It’s a long way until the season. You’ve got to really just look at it one practice at a time.”