This is SMU tight end Matthew Hibner's first spring with the team, something that can be easy to forget the way he stepped up over the final seven weeks of last season.

But with that experience, comes a level of comfortability that wasn't there during last offseason. When he came to the Mustangs over the summer, no one knew him or what he could accomplish on the field.

Now they do.

"It felt good to be more comfortable being more vocal and having the mutual respect with my teammates to be able to kind of keep building up on the camaraderie off and on the field," Hibner said. "I've always tried to lead by example first and let my actions speak louder, but I just love to be encouraging and I think it's a little bit less corny when I'm pushing guys to get better when they know who I am and we've kind of built up those relationships. So that's been good. I think it's improved."

Hibner played in 20 games over two seasons at Michigan, but was mostly a contributor on special teams catching just two passes. Now he is a proven commodity.

Following the injury to RJ Maryland, Hibner stepped up and caught 24 passes for 368 yards and four touchdowns last season. All but two of those receptions and 31 yards came in the final seven games of the year.

"We knew he was athletic, we knew he was talented, we knew he was tough, we knew he was versatile coming in here," SMU offensive coordinator and tight ends coach Casey Woods said. "I don't know that we knew the entirety of all that and that he could execute at a high level for 60-plus snaps, which is what he ultimately had to do later in the season, once RJ got hurt. And I mean, you're talking through those late games where he was really playing a lot of snaps and performed at a high level and did a great job there."

Now that he's done it, he wants to keep taking steps forward. That's Hibner's focus this spring, to add elements to his game and improve the skills he already has.

"I, obviously, always want to keep improving in the run game. I want that to be a staple, I think for all tight ends it should be," Hibner said. "And then getting downfield and being able to make cuts full speed, have the ability to build that separation on some of the deeper routes is something that, specifically, I want to focus on and have the intentionality going into practices thinking about."

But some of the most important work Hibner does this offseason might come off the field. SMU has a pair of young tight ends who have the potential to carry the position room moving forward in redshirt sophomores Adam Moore and Tripp Riordan.

Hibner and Maryland have made a point to work with them and help their development.

"I take a huge amount of pride and responsibility in that because that's how it was for the older guys in my tight end room at Michigan," Hibner said. "Just a bunch of great guys, just selfless guys, incredible character who really paved the way for me and helped me develop to become where I am at today. So the least I can do is try my best to pass that forward and give whatever insights I can. Obviously, I'm not an expert by any means, but if I can give Tripp or Adam a tidbit here and there, that's almost a responsibility."

All Hibner has known during his college career is winning. He's been to the College Football Playoffs all three years, including winning a national championship.

"I think he's a confident kid anyway, but now that he's got the confidence of having the success that he's had at this level and  continuing to win," Woods said. "He came from a winning program into a winning program. I don't think that he's missed the College Football Playoff in his college career, so I'm banking on that. He just thinks that's what we do during football season, which is good, that all the other kids start to believe it too,"

As Maryland continues to recover and the Mustangs wait for junior college transfer Devon Martin to join the team this summer, much of the on-field leadership falls on Hibner.

But once the room is at full strength, it will rival just about every tight end room out there.

"It's fun, him and RJ are a great one-two tandem. And even Stone (Eby) is a guy that's got a very unique role on this team," Woods said. I would argue that we have the best tight end room in the ACC, or at least have the chance to be. So really excited about watching those guys continue to come on."

If the room is going to live up to that, it has to put in the work this spring. That's been Hibner's focus, to take on more and get better each time he steps foot on the field. And when all the pieces come together, it makes it tough for a defense to line up against.

"I think all that does is sort of put some more versatility for the offense," Hibner said. "We can kind of present different personnels, different sets, with the ability to still spread the field out or condense into heavier sets. So the more versatile I can be, and the more versatile we can be as an offense, I think it's only a plus."