Getting To Know ... Craig Hibell
Q: What baseball memory stands out the most for you?
A: Winning the District 9 title after losing the championship game two years in a row to the same team by the same score.
Q: What is the best part of being a college athlete?
A: I am given the opportunity to play baseball for four more years than most people do.
Q: What is the best advice you have ever received from a coach?
A: The team having the most fun is usually the team who wins.
Q: Who is your most influential role model?
A: My Father.
Q: What celebrity would you most like to meet?
A: Rihanna or Jessica Alba.
Q: Do you have a favorite type of music you listen to?
A: I like rap and country even though they are very different types of music.
Q: What is your favorite movie?
A: Step Brothers or Dumb and Dumber.
Q: What is your favorite sports movie?
A: The Sandlot or Friday Night Lights.
Q: Do you have a favorite food or meal?
A: Homemade ice cream.
Q: What is your favorite holiday?
A: Christmas.
Q: What is your favorite professional baseball team?
A: Whoever is playing against the Yankees.
Q: Who is your favorite professional baseball player?
A: Ken Griffey Jr.
Q: Name one thing that people would be surprised to learn about you.
A: I can’t watch baseball on TV. Unless it is the World Series or the Little League World Series, I won’t watch it.
Q: What is the place that you haven’t traveled to, that you would most like to visit?
A: Hawaii. I want to see the beach there and enjoy the weather.
Q: What would be your dream job?
A: An Athletic Director at a high school close to my hometown.
Q: What is it that attracted you to IUP?
A: I liked how the baseball program turned around recently, it was a good fit for me, and close to home.
Q: What do you like most about the city of Indiana?
A: Compared to home, this is a big city. So I like how there is plenty of places to go and lots of things to do.
Q: What baseball team in the PSAC would you most like to beat?
A: Clarion. I know some of the players and the head coach for Clarion and it would be nice to beat them and have some bragging rights.
Q: What is your favorite thing about the sport of baseball?
A: Pitching when the pressure is on. I love pitching in a big game where every pitch could be the difference between a win or a loss.
Q: What is your earliest baseball memory?
A: Playing catch and pitching to my dad in the backyard.
Q: If you could play any other sport in college, what would it be?
A: Football. I miss the intensity and feeling you get right before kickoff on Friday Night.
Q: What (if any) pre-game superstitions or rituals do you have?
A: I have to take a shower before every game, and after I shower I throw the wash cloth over the shower door and land in the bathroom sink. If I make the shot, my team will win for sure that day. This has worked for me every time since I was 14 years old.
Q: What are some of your favorite things to do in your spare time when you are not playing baseball?
A: Weight Lifting and spending time with friends and family.
Q: What was your favorite TV show growing up?
A: Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. I still watch it as much as I can.
Q: What is your favorite TV show now? Do you have a favorite character on that show?
A: Family Guy. Peter Griffin is my favorite character because he is hilarious.
Q: What are your career goals ?
A: To graduate from IUP and become a high school athletic director .
Q: What does it take to be academically successful at IUP?
A: Study and do your homework. You have to take the time out of your day to study on your own and know what it takes in yourself to get good grades.
Q: What does it take to be athletically successful at IUP?
A: Hard work, desire and a love for the sport you play.