BEAUMONT, Texas – Another offseason has come and gone, and the calendar has turned the page for August which means players have reported back to campus for preseason camp. It also means LamarCardinals.com will once again be posting its annual position-by-position breakdowns leading up to the team's season opener Saturday, Aug. 30^th at North Texas.
 
Today LamarCardinals.com will break down the LU tight ends.
 
TE Quick Facts:
Letterwinners Returning/Lost: 4/0
Starters Returning/Lost: 1/0
Newcomers: 2
 
Stats: Lamar's tight ends combined to make 36 receptions for 354 yards and five touchdowns.
 
Key Player: Devyn Gibbs (17-163-4 TD-9.6 ypr) – a native of Mabank, Texas, Gibbs battled through injuries last season to earn second team all-conference honors. He ended the year fourth on the team in receptions.
 
The Storyline
One of the most physically imposing athletes in the Southland Conference, Gibbs casts a long shadow – standing 6-6, 251 pounds – a better description would be he casts an eclipse. He is a weapon for the Cardinals with big-play ability and has already produced numerous highlights during his career. Gibbs is a versatile athlete who is not just a big receiving target but can also shake a defender and pick up yards after the catch, and he is every bit as strong as a run blocker. The only thing that seemed to slow Gibbs down last year was an early-season injury which he obviously overcame as evidenced by his All-SLC nod. Cardinal fans should be able to expect even more from a healthy Gibbs in 2025.
 
Third-year tight ends coach Andrew Sparano has more to be excited about at the position than just Gibbs. Big Red is in the unique position of returning all four of its tight end letterwinners from last season. Combined this group – Gibbs, JaCorey Hyder (6-3, 252, Sr.), Shaun Grayson (6-3, 238, Sr.) and Morgan Sampson (6-3, 238, Sr.) – combined to play 36 games (that is 36 games experience in 2024 alone) and stands an average of 6-3, 252 pounds. I could stop writing here and that would be enough but I won't … because I'm hoping to be paid by the word.
 
I'm not sure what else can be said about that group – they're tough, coachable, hardworking, athletic and an imposing factor for defenses to worry with.
 
In addition to that, Lamar returns Mason Thomas (6-3, 244), Aidan Grummer (6-2, 242), C.J. DeMas (6-3, 251) and Tyler Bonkowski (6-2, 254) who are all freshmen who utilized their redshirt seasons last year, and are pushing the veterans for snaps. Those four redshirts would be considered a strength for any other squad and they have yet to take a snap at Lamar. I hope you are now getting the picture of just how talented Lamar is at the position.
 
Oh, and let's not forget the coaching staff added Connor Martin (6-4, 248, Fr.) and Skylar Stankovich (6-3, 232, Fr.) during the offseason. Not only should Lamar be strong at the tight end position this season, the future might even be brighter than the present … but for now let's just be excited for 2025!