‘Who is this diva?’ Meet the GymDogs student manager going viral for his hype

It’s not the first video of Mathis unfailingly hyping up Georgia’s gymnastics team to make the rounds on social media. But the post by former UCLA gymnast and USA Gymnastics athlete director Margzetta Frazier resonated with a huge audience, viewed by 34.7 million and counting on Instagram, with 1.3 million likes so far.

The GymDogs gave Mathis plenty to cheer about at the NCAA regional finals in Tempe, Arizona, with a score of 197.750 delivering a second-place finish that advanced them to the national semifinals in Fort Worth, Texas, for the first time since 2019.

“Who is this diva?” Frazier asked in the video she posted.

“The diva has entered the chat,” Mathis commented, to the tune of more than 44,000 likes.

The attention online has been a whirlwind for Mathis, a sport management major from Kennesaw. He was surprised at first — there was so much on the line for Georgia at regionals, yet he was the one in a video going viral? But Mathis’ enthusiasm for the sport is infectious, and if it shines more of a spotlight on the GymDogs, he’s all for it.

“If I’m getting more attention for the team, that’s what I want to be doing,” Mathis said of his newfound celebrity. “… Those 20 girls, they work so hard, I want them to be seen as much as possible. And if me blowing up gets more fans at nationals, then that’s what I’ll do.”

Mathis actually doesn’t have a background in gymnastics, playing baseball and tennis growing up. As a freshman at Georgia, he got involved with the Spike Squad, known for its school spirit, body paint and zeal at sporting events. He started going to gymnastics meets as part of the group, even attending an away meet at Auburn and the SEC championships.

“I just loved it,” Mathis said. “I was like, how can athletes even do this? It was just insane.”

He fell in love with gymnastics, and after being at so many meets, front and center, had gotten to know Georgia gymnast Nyla Aquino. He reached out to her over the summer to see if he could be helpful to the GymDogs.

Mathis interviewed with the team and had the job a few days later. Although in his second year at Georgia, he has the credits to be considered a junior and would like to attend grad school and work in athletics one day.

Apart from recovery or treatment time for the athletes, wherever the GymDogs are, Mathis is, too.

The job of student manager is more than being a hype man, with Mathis involved in routines, from sliding mats or pulling springboards for athletes. That’s part of why he wants to bring so much energy, to make sure he helps cultivate the right mindset when he’s close to those pivotal moments.

The GymDogs have welcomed him with open arms and are all for the energy he brings, Mathis said.

“For them, they’re there to compete, they have a job, they work so hard for it all year and then they get to this point,” Mathis said. “And I think the reason why, like, one of the reasons why I act how I act, is because when they’re going into their routine… I’m one of the faces that they look at, and I need to make sure that I’m in a good mood, have a smile on my face, because that’s how the girls are going to succeed, if they feel secure and they know that they have support around them… I want to be as supportive as I can be.

“So yeah, they love it, and they always comment and like, hype me up in the comments and everything. But yeah, I love them so much, and they appreciate me for what I do.”

Being so close to the action, day in and day out, is part of what allowed him to learn the choreography for their routines.

The comments Mathis received online have been overwhelmingly positive, with many saying they could use a hype man like Mathis in their own lives.

He doesn’t totally know how to handle the attention, he said, but overall loves that he’s been able to make some people smile.

Even before the latest video, people had already started to recognize him, whether it’s at dining halls on campus or a recent event at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta for former Georgia football player Malcolm Mitchell’s Read With Malcolm charity.

On March 30, Mathis made a post on Instagram announcing this would be his final year as student manager, with an outpouring of supportive comments from the GymDogs. The job requires a big-time commitment, but the door might not totally be closed on him returning next season, Mathis said when speaking with the AJC April 7.

In the meantime, it’s been a surreal ride for Mathis, who on Thursday will watch the GymDogs in the National Collegiate Championship semifinal. Georgia gymnastics has won an NCAA-record 10 national titles, the most recent in 2009.

“I can’t even explain, like, I don’t even know how I got into this, like, how this was even an opportunity that was open to me, why they hired me. I don’t know, I just love it,” Mathis said. “And once again, being able to see them as people, like, they’re not only athletes, but they’re my friends. So, like, I just love being able to watch some of my best friends succeed and, like, be the best that they can be.

“And now 20 of my best friends get to go compete at nationals for a national title. So, like, I’m gonna be bringing literally every ounce of energy that I have to that meet, because I want them to bring every ounce of energy that they have.”