Remember the name Imatorbhebhe
The tight end position is best described by the legendary former USC head coach John McKay as “a big boy, an intelligent boy, and, above all, a mean boy.” USC Trojans tight end Daniel Imatorbhebhe does more than just match the description.
The six-foot-three, 240lb redshirt senior knew USC was his dream school since age 15. After touring the campus with his younger brother, Imatorbhebhe fell in love with the trojan lifestyle. However, Imatorbhebhe was unable to go due to the small number of scholarships that USC could offer. Playing for the University of Florida was the “next best thing” for Imatorbhebhe, so for the time being, he became a Gator.
However, it was not long before Imatorbhebhe’s dream came true. Due to the fact that 3 of the 4 tight ends stopped playing at USC, Imatorbhebhe himself called and had the option to transfer from Florida.
“I had to make a really grown up decision at 18, like man should I leave where I am at to mess around and hope to get everything I want or dream at my dream school? I ended up doing it and I’m super happy,” Imatorbhebhe said.
Ever since his grown-up decision, Imatorbhebhe has performed greatly on and off the field. In his 22 appearances for the Trojans, Imatorbhebhe has started 9 of them and has totaled 394 yards in only 25 receptions. However, this was only as an underclassman. Imatorbhebhe suffered a hip flexor injury early in his sophomore year, and, while he was able to play 9 games that year, he sat out his junior year with an upper leg muscle injury.
While he has struggled through injuries for football, Imatorbhebhe has made his presence felt off the field. He won the USC’s Community Service award during the 2018 season and has even gone the extra mile to help out those in need. Imatorbhebhe was hosting a community service event for orphans and was ready to call it a day until he saw boxes of leftover meals. With the help of a couple of his teammates, Imatorbhebhe spent an hour giving the leftover meals to people living on the streets of LA. Despite going the extra mile that day, Imatorbhebhe did not feel satisfied.
“It really hit me when we finished and we turned to leave and we are still in Skid row and we saw how much of that area that we did not even come close to touching. So many people still lying there in pain, hungry, in need of some type of hope,” Imatorbhebe said.
While he has been doing community service and football, Imatorbhebe has also had to balance out his schoolwork. Although he is working towards the NFL combine, Imatorbhebhe received his bachelor’s degree in social sciences and is working on a master’s degree in social entrepreneurship.
Even though his last name may be hard to pronounce for some, Imatorbhebhe wants it to become a household name. And with his generosity off the field and his performance on the field, Imatorbhebhe’s dreams might come true for the second time in his life.
