Matthew W. Koart (born November 28, 1963) is an American former professional football player. He played college football for the USC Trojans, earning second-team All-Pac-10 Conference honors as a senior in 1985. He was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the fifth round of the 1986 NFL draft and played one season as a defensive end for them before retiring. After his football career, he became a real estate executive.
Koart was born on November 28, 1963, in Goleta, California.[1] Koart's father Bill, who played minor league baseball, died when he was 12.[2] He attended Dos Pueblos High School where he played football as a two-way tackle.[3] As a senior in 1980, he was selected first-team All-Channel League and second-team All-California Interscholastic Federation (CIF).[3][4] Koart also served as team captain at Dos Pueblos.[5] He was invited to the Santa Barbara County All-Star Game and signed to play college football for the USC Trojans in 1981.[6]
Koart redshirted in 1981; he then lettered for the football team from 1982 to 1985.[1][2] He entered school at a weight of 217 pounds (98 kg) to play defensive tackle, being very small for the position.[2] He recalled that "I was trying to fend off linemen like Roy Foster and Bruce Matthews and I was getting killed".[2] Koart thus decided to increase his weight, telling the Los Angeles Times that "I used to stuff myself so bad. I'd take a weight-gaining powder, put two bananas in it, grind it up and then shove it down my throat – 2,000 calories. And that was after I ate".[2] He eventually rose to a weight of 260 pounds (120 kg) and became one of USC's top linemen.[2]
As a sophomore in 1983, Koart missed four games due to a sprained ankle.[2] He posted 23 tackles in the 1984 season before tearing knee ligaments, requiring surgery and ending his season.[7] He then started every game and served as team captain for a USC team in 1985 that compiled a record of 6–6.[8][9] Koart totaled 86 tackles and three sacks during the season.[10] He was selected second-team All-Pac-10 Conference and was named an Academic All-American.[11][12] Koart concluded his collegiate career with a 177 tackles and nine sacks and was invited to the East–West Shrine Game.[9][10] He was the recipient of USC's Howard Jones/Football Alumni Club Award for highest grade-point average (GPA) among senior football players and graduated in 1986 with a degree in finance.[9][10]
Koart was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the fifth round (125th overall) of the 1986 NFL draft.[1] His teammate, defensive end Brent Moore, was also selected by the Packers.[13] Although his mother and agent preferred him to attend law school, he said that he "want[ed] to play football" and signed with the Packers in July 1986.[14] With Green Bay, Koart became a defensive end.[1] He impressed the Packers in training camp and made the final roster.[1][10] He made his NFL debut in Week 1 against the Houston Oilers and appeared in the Packers' first six games.[15] After six games, all of which were losses, the Packers released him, a decision that Koart said "shocked" him.[16] Although he had offers to tryout for other teams, Koart decided to retire to enter law school and began working as a clerk for a law firm.[17]
Koart graduated magna cum laude from the Marshall School of Business at USC and later graduated fourth in his class from USC's Gould School of Law.[18] He worked as a real estate attorney and then became an executive with homebuilding companies.[19] He founded Koart Residential, Inc., a group of privately held real estate companies, and served as the chief executive officer for real estate development firm Shapell Industries, Inc.[18] Koart worked various roles for PulteGroup from 1996 to 2008 and returned in 2023 as the company's executive vice president and chief operating officer.[20] In 2024, he was inducted into the California Homebuilding Foundation Hall of Fame.[18] He is married and has three children.[18]
