Matthew Hibner

[1983 Cotton Bowl]

Here is what I have heard/know about Hibner:

1. He was brought in from Michigan as more of a blocking tight end and to add some veteran big game experience.

2. He exceeded expectations in camp.

3. He has 2 receptions on the year, and none in the past several games.

I've seen him appear in games, but I frankly haven't paid much attention since he hasn't been targeted much.

So, for those who have watched him more closely than I have, what do you see? What does the TE position look like with Hibner and Moore getting the snaps instead of RJ?

Thanks

[Charleston Pony]

I remember an early season interview with Hibner and his saying he wanted to show that in addition to being "just a blocking TE" he could also be another receiver so we can only hope. I was disappointed he didn't react and come back to the ball on the broken play where Jennings threw the pic against Stanford so he doesn't have the instincts and/or chemistry with Jennings that Maryland has shown.

I actually thought Adam Moore showed a lot of potential last year and I see he played in a couple of the early games but hasn't played since. Don't know if they had hoped to RS him or whether he was injured early? At any rate, it's "next man up" time

[leopold]

If he's looking for receptions it's going to be competitive, seeing as we hit 8 or 9 different players each game with passes, and even have a WR turned RB catching TD passes.

If I were him (and God do I wish I were him right now) I'd start building a relationship with KJ right now and set myself up for success next year, where I will be in a position to truly excel in the position and make it look like I am NFL ready after the 20205 season.

Good luck to him.

EDIT: Nevermind. Start running routes IMMEDIATELY.

[HubbaHubba]

Isn't he going to fill in for RJ? Call the same plays and plug him in.

[PonyPride]

I wrote this in the preseason, and have seen nothing that has suggested anything in this has changed:

• True story: talked with a PonyFan friend about the upcoming season, and he mentioned transfer TE Matt Hibner, saying, "he's from Michigan, so you know he's a great blocker." (Hibner actually is from Burke, Va., but he did play for the Wolverines before transferring to SMU.) The assessment of Hibner's blocking might prove accurate — I didn't see him block anyone, but Michigan has a long history of elite offensive lines and tight ends who can steamroll opposing defenses — but it is clear Hibner is not a blocking-only tight end. The roster lists him at 6-5 and 251 pounds, but he looks lankier than that weight suggests. He also is an explosive leaper with long arms, and showed soft hands when pulling in a couple of passes that were slightly off target — one of which he tipped to himself. Keep in mind, offensive coordinator Casey Woods also is the tight ends coach, and he loves to get them involved in the offense as receiving threats, in addition to their blocking responsibilities. (Remember when SMU hung 77 points on Houston a couple of years ago? Woods was understandably thrilled with the victory and the points explosion, but he was absolutely giddy when he pointed out that Ben Redding and R.J. Maryland gave the Mustangs FIVE touchdowns by tight ends.) Woods and the rest of the coaches still are mixing and matching to see what combinations will work against which defenses, but it looks like Hibner gives another viable option, that depending on how creative Woods gets, could present some interesting challenges for opposing defenses.

[JasonB]

Hibner is a very different player than RJ. He is a good blocker, and exceeded expectations in camp with his ability to provide a strong target and catch the ball.

However, he does not provide the explosive, downfield threat that RJ (and in the past Grant C and Granson provided).

RJ changes the way that other teams have to defend SMU. If you tried to cover him with a LB, you had to bracket with a safety to prevent him from going over the top. Most teams had to cover him with a nickel/safety. If you are running a 4-2-5 and SMU has three wideouts plus RJ, you can't leave a LB on him, so you either have to bracket him (double him) or you are running a zone.

With RJ off the field and replacing with Hibner, you are moving from protecting against Gronk to handling Dalton Shultz. Now my 4-2-5 base can play him straight man. I can leave my safety in two deep, or I can use a free player to blitz or defend against the run in the box.

This is a very impactful injury. Look no further than the Stanford game. Early in the game, Jennings moves to his right and RJ after his route is done to the sideline sneaks deep once the defenders have their eyes on Jennings and catches a wide open TD. Later in the game, Jennings rolls right in his own endzone, Hibner is in the game, gets trapped on the sideline, doesn't escape deep and Jennings throws in tight coverage to him and the pass gets picked. Bad decision by Jennings, sure, but it illustrates the difference in threat from the TEs.

Adam Moore provides more of a deep threat like RJ, but I am really concerned that he wasn't listed on the two deep as the backup TE and we haven't seen him in a while. I wonder if he is injured. I would feel better if he is available.

[Vitale]

Re: Moore:
Lashlee did refer to "getting him back." I wonder if he has been hurt and we just didn't know it because Maryland and Hibner were the entire rotation. Sure would be nice to get him back by Saturday.

[PlanoStang]

Dallas Morning News has an article that says Maryland is out for the season. Will probably be back next year since the injury might make him want to wait to go to the NFL.

[Charleston Pony]

Re: Moore:
Lashlee did refer to "getting him back." I wonder if he has been hurt and we just didn't know it because Maryland and Hibner were the entire rotation. Sure would be nice to get him back by Saturday.

Not sure what injuries Moore has been dealing with but hopefully he can come back and play at full strength because we need both Moore and Hibner to offset the loss of RJ