SMU will be without their top receiver for the remainder of the 2024 season.
Star tight end RJ Maryland, who has been a crucial player for the Mustangs in their first season in the ACC, has suffered a significant lower-body injury. Head coach Rhett Lashlee confirmed that Maryland sustained the injury following a hit to his knee during SMU’s 40-10 victory over Stanford.
"It’s unfortunate. It hit just right so we’ll see," Lashlee said via Lonestar Live. "We won’t know until we get the imaging done on Monday. He wasn’t in a lot of pain, so that was positive. It was a pretty violent hit right on his knee."
Maryland, a product of Southlake Carroll High School and son of former Dallas Cowboys star Russell Maryland, was expected to continue his breakout performance in 2024 after an impressive 2023 season.
Maryland's season was off to a stellar start. In SMU’s opening game, he caught eight passes for 162 yards and secured the game-winning touchdown. So far, he leads the team in receptions (24), receiving yards (359), and receiving touchdowns (4), making his absence a significant blow to the Mustangs' offense.
While SMU has leaned heavily on its running game this season, the loss of Maryland will be felt deeply. Michigan transfer Matthew Hibner and sophomore Adam Moore are expected to step up in his absence. Hibner has only two receptions for 31 yards this season, while Moore has eight catches for 110 yards over two seasons.
This comes at a time when SMU holds a 6-1 overall record and a perfect 3-0 record in the ACC. The Mustangs are one of three teams who are undefeated in ACC play, joining Miami and Clemson currently. SMU has had no trouble adjusting to the ACC thus far through three games, but the Mustangs will face a tougher schedule the rest of the way.
With five conference games remaining, SMU is set to travel to Duke this weekend and then will host Pittsburgh and Boston College. The Mustangs will go on the road to Virginia and then finish back at home against California.
If SMU, Clemson, and Miami all went undefeated in ACC play, there would be a three-way tie and only two teams could be selected to go play in Charlotte. That means the ACC tiebreaker would then come down to conference opponent win percentage. However, losing Maryland could prove to be a big loss that potentially leads SMU further away from its playoff aspirations in Year 1 of the ACC.
SMU and Duke (6-1) will kickoff at 8 p.m. on the ACC Network this Saturday.