He went on to Smoky Mountain Wrestling (SMW) in 1992, where he was a referee under the ring name Mark Curtis and also wrestled occasionally as Kowabunga, fully costumed like a Ninja Turtle. Throughout his tenure in SMW as a referee, Hildebrand was known for wearing suspenders with his outfit. He also had brief heel work where he was allied with Jim Cornette, and made appearances in USWA along with Cornette. When SMW closed in 1995, he went on to work as a referee in Extreme Championship Wrestling, under his real name. After leaving ECW he went on to work as referee Mark Curtis in World Championship Wrestling. During his time in WCW, he earned the nickname The Shooter after a fan attempted to interfere in a match between Psychosis and Dean Malenko on the September 8, 1997 edition of "Nitro". As the invading fan slid under the bottom rope to enter the ring, Hildebrand, who happened to have glanced over just as the man jumped the guard rail, kneed the fan in the face and placed the man in a guillotine choke, and held him there until WCW security could take him into custody. Play-by-play announcer Tony Schiavone and color commentator Bobby Heenan found this amusing, with Heenan observing "The smallest referee in the world just took him down!"