Matt Mayberry: Future NFL Superstar

Written By Phil Walus

With less than 1 week until the 2010 NFL draft, we at the Average Chicagoan are looking at some local talent as they begin to get ready for the big day. Matt Mayberry former Indiana Hoosier’s ILB will be awaiting his name to be called during Thursdays-Saturdays Draft.

Matt played fullback, middle linebacker and safety for Hindsdale South High School under head coach Jim Kirwan. He rushed for 2,242 yards and 36 touchdowns while guiding his team to a 10-2 finish as a senior. He also garnered all-state honors as well as the Reporter-Progress/Suburban Life All-Area Football Player of the Year award. Matt owns the school career records for rushing yards (2,827) and touchdowns (39), single-season records for rushing yards (2,242), touchdowns (36) and points (186) and the single-game record for touchdowns (five).

As a Junior, Mayberry led the Hoosier’s with 89 tackles and shared the team lead with 53 solo stops. Mayberry was second on the Hoosiers with five sacks for 35 yards and shared second with 8.5 tackles for loss. He also tied for the team lead with two fumble recoveries and added two pass breakups. Matt tied a school record with four sacks against Central Michigan, a 2008 conference single-game high, and collected career highs with 13 tackles and 10 solos. He also became the third player in school history to reach the four-sack mark, joining current Chicago Bear Adewale Ogunleye (1997) and Van Waiters (1986).

As a senior, Mayberry once again led the Hoosiers with 108 tackles and 61 solo tackles and finished fourth in the Big Ten with 9.0 tackles per game and third in league games only with 10.5 stops each time out. He ended the year second on the team with 5.5 sacks (38 yards), 11 tackles for loss (43 yards) and three interceptions ranked 10th in Big Ten games only with 8.5 TFLs … added one fumble recovery. Mayberry ended his career with 251 tackles, 139 solo, 10.5 sacks (73 yards), 22.5 tackles for loss (99 yards), three interceptions and three fumble recoveries.

Matt Mayberry might be one of this year’s players that get drafted that didn’t go to the NFL Scouting Combine. He is a good overall linebacker who has good instincts, can run and chase and should could play inside in a 3-4 or outside in a 4-3 as a weak “Before the Pro Day I was mainly hearing from 4-3 teams, now after the Pro Day and teams have seen my speed I have heard from a number of 3-4 teams,” said Mayberry.

Well that is because Mayberry had a great Pro Day, he checked in at 6012 and 235 pounds. He posted times of 4.45 & 4.48 in the 40 yard dash. He also ran a 4.08 in the 20-yard shuttle, a 6.84 in the 3-cone drill, with a 9’11″ broad jump and a 31.5″ vertical. Mayberry also had 24 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press. He is one of the fastest Linebackers in the country.

“I have always been a fast guy, but training at Ignition, they helped me perform like I did at the Pro Day,” said Mayberry. “A lot of people thought I was going to run in the 4.6 range and I think that I shock them with what I ran.” Mayberry has worked out for a number of NFL teams personally including the Chicago Bears and the New England Patriots, two very different types of defenses. The Bears play a 4-3 defense with mainly Tampa-Two scheme principals, and the Patriots are a 3-4 defense that attack offense in many different ways.

So hopefully everyone will be pulling for the Darien,IL as he begins his quest to go to the next level.

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