Snyder gets his shot

It has all the makings of a movie.

Football films such as “Rudy” or “Invincible” documented the rise to glory of players that were all but forgotten by their peers in the sport and eventually made the team in storybook fashion.

Another example will be on display Saturday at Scott Stadium at 6 p.m.

A relative unknown since the day he strolled onto the football team at Virginia, Matt Snyder has worked day after day, inside and out of practice, as though it would his last.

It has paid off — the walk-on is slated to start Saturday against William & Mary.

His spot as one of the top wideouts on the depth chart, however, was not something that the virtual unknown was privy to before Wednesday.

“I actually wasn’t aware of that,” Snyder said. “If that’s what it says, that’s great. Nothing is certain until that whistle blows at 6 o’clock, but I’m sure whoever is starting at receiver, whether it be myself or any of the other receivers, I’m sure they’re going to play well and play hard.”

What Snyder has done in practice has mesmerized his teammates. Play after play, Snyder bursts downfield and lays it all on the line.

“He’s one of the hardest workers, I think, on the team,” said Virginia linebacker Aaron Clark. “He’s extremely diligent in what he does, trying to get all the little techniques right. He runs absolutely as hard as he can every play, blocking and doing whatever he needs to do help the team or to be successful and to play.

“I think Matt’s going to have a great year.”

Clark noted that Snyder’s role is similar to the plot of “Invincible”, a movie about Vince Papale, who landed on the Philadelphia Eagles roster without playing college football.

“He kind of reminds me of that,” Clark said. “He’s a no-B.S. guy — excuse me for saying that — but he just gets up there and he works and he doesn’t try to be flashy or anything. He just puts his nose to the grindstone and does his job.

“I think as a coach, you pray for players like that.”

Snyder received zero interest from Division I-A or I-AA schools at Deep Run High in Richmond. With that in mind, he joined the team at Virginia in 2007 with what he called a “chip on his shoulder.”

“The chance to be a walk-on — it was a tough one, but a good one at the same time,” said Snyder, who is listed at 6-foot-4 and 225 pounds. “Virginia gave me a chance when no one else would. I was very gracious for that chance and to this day they have treated walk-ons and myself phenomenally.

“If you work hard as a walk-on you can do things and it is an equal opportunity team, walk-on or scholarship player. Virginia treated walk-ons like their scholarship players.”

Snyder said he was unaware of his status on the depth chart because numerous players have rotated in during training camp.

“I just tried to keep my nose to the grindstone and keep working and not really worry about where I was or where I wasn’t on the depth chart,” he said. “Until Saturday, nothing is certain. If I get in the game on Saturday, I’ll be very pleased and feel very blessed. If not, I’ll keep working and go from there.”