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Ryan Niblett: Texas' unexpected MVP that almost never was

by: Evan Vieth17 hours ago
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Ryan Niblett (Will Gallagher/Inside Texas)

After the Oklahoma game, punt returner Ryan Niblett was made available to the media for seemingly the first time in his career.

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It’s not surprising. Up until this season, Niblett had been nothing more than a reserve, accumulating just 38 total offensive snaps in his first two seasons with the Longhorns. Despite his high rating on recruiting sites, Niblett was a tweener. He didn’t have a correct position.

That’s why head coach Steve Sarkisian has used him in so many different ways.

“His role has evolved,” Sarkisian said on Monday. “In spring, this guy was playing DB. And then he comes over, he’s playing receiver, and then we move him into running back. And nobody thought in this room, ourselves included, we didn’t think he’d be the kick returner or the punt returner coming into the season, but his role has evolved as the season goes on.”

If you include his roles on special teams, Niblett has played six different positions for the Horns — but there was a time when that seemed like a reason to move on from Austin.

As he told the media for the first time after that Oklahoma game, in which he had a punt return touchdown to seal the victory in the Red River Rivalry game, there were points in his career where he intended to transfer.

That’s not all that surprising. He had committed to the University of Texas to start on this offense, and yet, after two years, he hadn’t even come close to that.

Yet Sarkisian had made it clear to Niblett that he was an important part of this team’s identity — a key piece moving forward.

“I credit him because there were moments when he was thinking about leaving this place. I didn’t let him leave. I fought to keep him here,” Sarkisian said after the Oklahoma game.

Fast forward a week later, and Niblett yet again came up big. One could argue he was the MVP of the Longhorns in their win against Kentucky on Saturday, despite having fewer than five offensive snaps.

That’s because Niblett generated 88 yards of offense through punt returning, once again finding value on special teams.

No play felt more valuable than his risky decision to return a punt deep in the game with a man bearing down on him. Instead of fair catching like most returners would, Niblett remained calm, brought the punt in, made the first man miss, and sprinted his way down the sideline, emerging with the ball on Kentucky’s 45-yard line. The game should’ve been put to bed there, with Niblett setting up the Longhorns for a game-winning field goal drive.

“I just knew the situation. The game was two minutes left, and I just knew I had to get out of there, set my offense up for it,” Niblett said. “And just get them motivated, just to go out there and be poised and composed, just slow the game down.”

That marks two straight games where Niblett has given Texas a much-needed boost on special teams.

Last year, that unit was Texas’ worst. This year, it’s helping alleviate major struggles on the offensive side of the ball.

The Longhorns wouldn’t be 5-2 without the help of Niblett, who also recently had his first child enter his life just a month ago.

“I try to balance it all out,” Niblett said about being a father. “When I’m at football, I try to only focus on football. When I’m at home, I try to focus on being a dad.”

Whether it was newfound dad strength or excellence in preparation, a switch has been flipped for Niblett this season, and it couldn’t have come at a better time for the Longhorns.

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