Zach Line FB??

Freethinker · Nov 14, 2011

RK

PLAYER

TEAM

ATT

YDS

YDS/A

LONG

TD

5

Zach Line, RB

SMU

208

1224

5.9

46

17

14

Rex Burkhead, RB

NEB

212

1072

5.1

52

14

21

Chandler Harnish, QB

NIU

127

1022

8.0

51

9

23

Collin Klein, QB

KSU

241

1009

4.2

63

24

Nice to see Line up to 5th!! 3 others in the top 25 is not bad considering there are so few White runners. 24 touchdowns for Klein is tops in the nation.

Deadlift · Nov 18, 2011

Sad news.

http://smu.scout.com/a.z?s=357&p=2&c=1129824&ssf=1&RequestedURL=http://smu.scout.com/2/1129824.html

Zach Line out for the season with injury

		By Laken Litman Date: Nov 17, 2011 Zach Line tore a tendon in his foot against Navy last weekend and will not play against Houston on Saturday. He will need surgery and is out for the rest of the season. Line leads C-USA in scoring (10.2 yards per game), rushing yards (1,224), yards per game (122.4) and touchdowns (17) and is ranked in the Top 5 nationally in those categories. This is a huge blow for SMU.

icsept · Nov 18, 2011

Damn.

dwid · Nov 18, 2011

It sucks but it might be a blessing in disguise for his long term career. He can come back stronger next year. Not only has he been playing with a messed up shoulder, he has had an injured hamstring. He was barely practicing during the week. Continuing to play would have messed up his hamstring more, so hopefully it heals up and he doesn't miss time in the future because of it. I think the lack of practice probably led him to be more prone to injury, I mean he was playing on the injury for at least a month if my memory is right. If they would have let him rest for 2 weeks this might not have happened and they could have had him for a bowl game, but it shows how important he is to the offense and they most likely wouldn't have won some of those games if he was out. June Jones can still make his offense work without a top level runningback but he made it so much easier.

edit: the shoulder separation was listed at 9-24 so closer to 2 months, not sure when the hamstring was injured, I think that was for a month. Looks like they were probably hoping he could play through this as well, the article reported it on thursday.

Colonel_Reb · Nov 18, 2011

Sad news, but I hope Zach will be able to come back better than ever in 2012!

celticdb15 · Nov 18, 2011

Who's his backup? I know his younger brother also a runningback is on the SMU roster..

Best of luck to Line hoping he can garner a combine invite. He had a stellar career!

FootballDad · Nov 18, 2011

celticdb15 said:
Who's his backup? I know his younger brother also a runningback is on the SMU roster..

Best of luck to Line hoping he can garner a combine invite. He had a stellar career!

I actually had to look, but Zach is only a junior, so he'll be back for a senior campaign.

As for the backup, the depth chart only shows Zach! How's that for commitment! His backups on the roster are senior Bryce Lunday (also white) and junior Billy Dugal (another paleface).

Prescott Line is still in HS, won't be to SMU until next year.

Leonardfan · Nov 18, 2011

It's bad news but at least he played in 10 of the 12 games this season. Like others have said he will be back at full strength next year. Hopefully Padron will be back and playing like he did in his 2010 campaign to give some relief to Line with a better passing game. McDermott has been decent but Padron was a great QB in 2010.

celticdb15 · Nov 22, 2011

FootballDad said:
I actually had to look, but Zach is only a junior, so he'll be back for a senior campaign.

As for the backup, the depth chart only shows Zach! How's that for commitment! His backups on the roster are senior Bryce Lunday (also white) and junior Billy Dugal (another paleface).

Prescott Line is still in HS, won't be to SMU until next year.

Thanks FBDad. SMU sure knows how to churn out those pasty faced running backs! Look forward to seeing both the Line's next year!

Interesting to see that SMU's RB coach is of Hawaiian\Asian descent..
Wes Suan

http://ponyfans.com/features/index.php?id=152

dwid · Dec 5, 2011

Does anyone know if Line is definitely out for the season? That was written when it looked like they might get an early bowl game, but SMU is now playing January the 7th which is almost 2 months since the injury (11/12/11). We've seen White athletes rehab a lot quicker than expected before....

Riddlewire · Dec 5, 2011

That's a good question.
I never considered the late date of the bowl game.

I suspect information won't be forthcoming any time soon. The Dallas Morning News usually includes noteworthy info for SMU. Nothing in there today. Although it looks like June Jones is seriously considering the Arizona State job. I don't think that would be good for Zach. It takes unique circumstances and the right coach for a white runningback to get a chance to play tailback in D1A. A new coach will have a different system (not a lot of RnS guys out there) and will want to play "his" boys.

white is right · Dec 5, 2011

What formation does Zach currently run out of ? Also if Jones leaves(which he probably will as he been a gypsy in the past) does somebody on staff have a good chance of taking over? I think if the same offensive system is in place his touches won't decline as he obviously the best back in a weaker Conference USA. Obviously if a Rich Rod. type takes over then anything is possible.

Leonardfan · Dec 5, 2011

I believe Line runs mostly out of shotgun and single back formations. June Jones runs that spread offense so their is not as much reliance on a Fullback or Tight ends to block in the run game..

Colonel_Reb · Dec 19, 2011

Zach Line named Honorable-Mention All-American by SI.com. I still haven't read anything to indicate that he'll be back for the Compass Bowl in Birmingham, so most likely it will be next season before we see him running again.

http://smumustangs.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/121411aaa.html

dwid · Dec 22, 2011

Highlights from this season and last. WATCH IN FULLSCREEN MODE. For some reason I couldn't get some of the footage full screen no matter how hard I tried or what program I used so to get a decent viewing on it go to fullscreen mode. It is still missing a few of his best runs that didn't result in touchdowns but its hard to find SMU footage.
[video=youtube;ck9ca7zMm7Q]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ck9ca7zMm7Q[/video]

hope you guys enjoy!

celticdb15 · Dec 22, 2011

Great work Dwid, Line is more fluid and athletic than a lot of people give him credit for.. Not to mention he has prototypical NFL powerback size, next year with him and Burkhead will be fun to watch. Who knows maybe Wegher will find his way back to the field as well.

dwid · Dec 22, 2011

Thanks I'm glad you liked the video, sorry about the size.

Yeah he is very fluid, someone on here worded it best, I forget who, that he is very light on his feet, almost tap dancing so he doesn't have to make those dramatic stop and go cuts. Gerhart is kind of like this as well, I remember some loser dwf from nfldraftcountdown made a video saying Toby Gerhart couldn't make cuts showing clips of a few select plays. His whole argument was that he didn't make dramatic body shifts, like an LT type back.....yet somehow he always managed to find the hole when it was there, no matter where it was and if he had to change direction. Gerhart looked a little different though, he reminded me of an airplane gliding, he would just kind of tilt his shoulder one way and somehow wind up making a big change of direction.

Line's moves reminds me that of a scatback, which is amazing considering his size. His first year he was just a straight ahead guy that was used in goal line situations. They told him to work with someone to learn how to make people miss, man that sure payed off. I wonder who he worked with, John Kuhn could use it, it would benefit him more in the Packer's offense, he is more of one cut and go, and it would be helpful when they are running him out of shotgun and he has to stop and go and make people miss before he hits full speed.

so yeah I would love the draft experts try to put "straight ahead power runner" for Line's analysis, they did it for every other White back that came out..

Don't forget, we have Hunter Lee as well for next year, who will be a sophomore. I think he has the potential to develop into a top back like Burkhead, but it is going to be awesome that we have two elite backs going pro after next year, lets just hope they stay healthy, neither have the luxury of coming out early like other top backs and won't get picked up if they get injured their last season unlike blacks. We've been lucky though, Gerhart (Sharp and Lippincott were playing as well) came after Hester, then Burkhead, Line and Wegher (hopefully he gets to play somewhere), and maybe McGuffie puts it together (perhaps better as a corner?, safety, at worst receiver, I can't see him getting ignored after his pro day), now Lee and Trumpy (probably a few more will emerge like Tyler Gaffney). Its not much compared to what it should be, but a lot compared to before Hester, at least from my memory.

unfortunately we only have a couple of mid level talents going pro this season. JJ DiLuigi who would make a great 3rd down back but I would put a late 2nd round-3rd round grade on him, so he will probably go much later with the caste system (especially since Quezada ate up alot of DiLuigi's carries and he didn't put up the 1k plus from scrimmage like last year. Quezada averaged an amazing 3.6 ypc with a long of 15, 1 td and 4 receptions, Bryan Kariya did much better, but the offense shouldve been featured around JJ who wound up with 805 yards from scrimmage). Then there is Joe Martinek, who might be lucky to get the role Brian Leonard is playing now after changing to fullback. I haven't looked at any of the lower level guys, maybe we have some hidden gems.

SchaafC · Dec 22, 2011

dwid said:
Thanks, yeah he is very fluid, someone on here worded it best, I forget who, that he is very light on his feet, almost tap dancing so he doesn't have to make those dramatic stop and go cuts. Gerhart is kind of like this as well, I remember some loser dwf from nfldraftcountdown made a video saying Toby Gerhart couldn't make cuts showing clips of a few select plays. His whole argument was that he didn't make dramatic body shifts, like an LT type back.....yet somehow he always managed to find the hole when it was there, no matter where it was and if he had to change direction. Gerhart looked a little different though, he reminded me of an airplane gliding, he would just kind of tilt his shoulder one way and somehow wind up making a big change of direction.

Line's moves reminds me that of a scatback, which is amazing considering his size. His first year he was just a straight ahead guy that was used in goal line situations. They told him to work with someone to learn how to make people miss, man that sure payed off. I wonder who he worked with, John Kuhn could use it, it would benefit him more in the Packer's offense, he is more of one cut and go, and it would be helpful when they are running him out of shotgun and he has to stop and go and make people miss before he hits full speed.

so yeah I would love the draft experts try to put "straight ahead power runner" for Line's analysis, they did it for every other White back that came out..

Don't forget, we have Hunter Lee as well for next year, who will be a sophomore. I think he has the potential to develop into a top back like Burkhead, but it is going to be awesome that we have two elite backs going pro after next year, lets just hope they stay healthy, neither have the luxury of coming out early like other top backs and won't get picked up if they get injured their last season unlike blacks. We've been lucky though, Gerhart (Sharp and Lippincott were playing as well) came after Hester, then Burkhead, Line and Wegher (hopefully he gets to play somewhere), and maybe McGuffie puts it together (perhaps better as a corner?, safety at worst receiver, I can't see him getting ignored after his pro day), now Lee and Trumpy (probably a few more will emerge like Tyler Gaffney). Its not much compared to what it should be, but a lot compared to before Hester, at least from my memory.

unfortunately we only have a couple of mid level talents going pro this season. JJ DiLuigi who would make a great 3rd down back but I would put a late 2nd round-3rd round grade on him, so he will probably go much later with the caste system. Then there is Joe Martinek, who might be lucky to get the role Brian Leonard is playing now after changing to fullback. I haven't looked at any of the lower level guys, maybe we have some hidden gems.

I agree there are so many more of our guys coming up now then when I first became aware of the CasteSystem. I don't think anyone will take DuLuigi, IMO he is talented but not supremely so. Would love to see Martinek make it to a team, but I also feel this is unlikely, at least as a RB. Anyone know if Chase Reynolds stuck on the PS all year in St. Louis?

dwid · Dec 22, 2011

SchaafC said:
I agree there are so many more of our guys coming up now then when I first became aware of the CasteSystem. I don't think anyone will take DuLuigi, IMO he is talented but not supremely so. Would love to see Martinek make it to a team, but I also feel this is unlikely, at least as a RB. Anyone know if Chase Reynolds stuck on the PS all year in St. Louis?

Not sure if he is still on there but I know he was constantly signed and waived from the practice squad. Ive read from Montana fans that the Rams want to use him in a return man/special teams role but didn't feel like they had enough time to work with him with the lock out (a b.s. excuse) but I think he sticks around and hopefully gets a shot.

I think JJ will be drafted with the recent success of Woodhead and the league being more pass oriented (he had 45 catches his junior year, his senior year the qb missed him quite a bit.) They had him running more routes than a normal rb, lining him up at slot receiver at times. Even though Woodhead is 10x more talented, most "talent evaluators" see them in the same light, smaller White backs that can catch and block very well. I think JJ would be much better than someone like Dexter McCluster who has carved out a role for himself. I can see him going somewhere from the 5th to 7th as a hybrid rb/wr. Martinek will probably be an UDFA. I think it all depends on how they do on their pro days, if either of them can go sub 4.5 then they have a shot, but I think both of them are in the 4.5 range, maybe JJ can get in the 4.4 range at his pro day. Sad since McCluster was drafted (I think in the 3rd or 4th) with a 4.58 40.

I wonder where Line will go after next year, hopefully his production doesn't drop off. There was a black back that looked solid in his absence but nothing spectacular. I am not sure if June Jones is coming back. I know he didn't get hired, but I think he officially left SMU. The other team deciding not to hire him at the last second hasn't happened before. I'll have to look it up, I know some SMU fans were confused on the issue when it first happened.

edit: just looked it up, SMU's president says Jones is their coach. I don't know for how long, several people mentioned that they won't have the funds to keep paying him after next year. Not enough booster funds or something. Maybe Line can lead them to go undefeated and win C-USA. They need to sell more tickets though. This is why some of the Whiter schools don't win as much, the good coaches always leave for more money (the most money is in the SEC, who has the biggest television contracts, the only conference tied to a major national network). Hopefully with the new realignments of conferences other schools get more money, I know SMU is going to the Big East, a step up, but not by much. Boise St's coach has stayed for a very long term. Northwestern should be improving, their coach is committed to staying, if Dan Persa would have stayed healthy they would have a better record this year. Sucks that Tech got rid of Leach, hopefully he stays for a while at his new school and they are White friendly.

seattlefan · Dec 22, 2011

Love the clip dwid, especially impressive is that he's a converted LB. Where do you get the footage for the highlight vids?

FootballDad · Dec 23, 2011

seattlefan said:
Love the clip dwid, especially impressive is that he's a converted LB. Where do you get the footage for the highlight vids?

I suppose that is accurate in that he was recruited to SMU as a linebacker, but in high school he played both ways, starting at RB and LB. This is from his SMU bio:

Prep: Had a team-high 154 tackles with eight forced fumbles and four recoveries... Rushed for 1,723 yards and 17 TDs... Also threw for three TDs... An All-State pick.

Jimmy Chitwood · Oct 15, 2012

i was playing around on the intra-webs for a few minutes today, and i stumbled across an interesting article on the Line brothers. now both at SMU, Zach (linebacker-turned-starting tailback) and younger brother Prescott (recruited to be a tailback or possibly a linebacker) are quite the pair. Zach is one of the all-time best backs in the storied history of SMU's backfield, yet he was virtually unrecruited.

similarly, Prescott, despite even better numbers and more recognition in high school, only had two Division One scholarship offers: SMU and Central Michigan. which is "weird," considering that the younger Prescott was a PARADE All-American, named Mr. Football in Michigan, and was a three-star Rivals and Scout prospect. :dodgy:

Prescott doesn't have the speed of his older brother, but his production was simply off the charts: a school and league record with 2,454 rushing yards and 37 touchdowns as a senior. his numbers as a linebacker were equally as impressive.

here's the link to the article: http://www.dallasnews.com/sports/he...ine-follow-similar-paths-to-smu-backfield.ece

i'll copy and paste it below.

UNIVERSITY PARK â€” Zach and Prescott Line excelled in football and wrestling. The brothersâ€™ high school feats landed them football scholarships to SMU.

But Joe Line also recalls periods of instability when his sons almost broke up the household.
â€œI love that they have a mutual respect until they try to find out who is best,â€ he said. â€œThatâ€™s when furniture gets broken. My wife will tell me to break it up, but Iâ€™ll say, â€˜Are you crazy? Thatâ€™s 500 pounds of bodies flying around.â€™â€

SMU coach June Jones has been watching Zach break through holes for four seasons.
With 104 yards rushing against Texas A&M last week, Zach moved to fifth in school history with 3,206 yards, passing Reggie Dupard and Craig James. The Mustangs have played in three straight bowl games with Zach in tow.

Prescott could be next in line. The freshman looks and runs like his big bro.

â€œTheyâ€™re very similar kids athletically and mentally,â€ Jones said. â€œIt looks like when Zachâ€™s done, weâ€™re just going to say, â€˜Hey, put No. 48 on Prescott,â€™ and itâ€™s going to look like the same guy.â€

Zach is listed as 6-1, 230; Prescott, 6-0, 235. At Oxford (Mich.) High School, Zach played running back, linebacker and special teams. So did Prescott.

As seniors, Zach rushed for 1,723 yards and 17 touchdowns, Prescott 2,454 yards and 37 TDs. As an inside linebacker, Zach posted a team-high 154 tackles, eight forced fumbles and four recoveries; Prescott had 128 tackles, four forced fumbles and two interceptions.

â€œZach was a role model to me, but I have a different running style,â€ Prescott said. â€œZachâ€™s more of a mobile, agile guy who gets to the outside. Iâ€™m more of a guy who goes toward somebody.â€

Despite their impressive stats, the brothers drew scant attention from colleges. Each took one visit â€” to SMU.

Zach was teammates with the son of Bill Keenist, the Detroit Lionsâ€™ senior vice president of communications. Keenist sent Zachâ€™s highlight DVD to Jones, former quarterbacks coach with the Lions.

Jones called soon after, inviting Zach for an official visit to the University of Hawaii, where he was coaching. Zach gave an oral commitment. Then he got another call.

â€œThey told me, â€˜Hey, hold off, we have some stuff going on,â€™â€ Zach recalled. â€œThey had moved here, and I had never heard of SMU. They said, â€˜Weâ€™re still offering you, but we want you to come check us out. So I came down here and loved everything about it.â€

Zach went through one practice at linebacker until SMUâ€™s staff decided he would be more effective punishing linebackers. He played in every game as a freshman, starting six. As a sophomore, he rushed for 1,494 yards, second in school history behind Eric Dickersonâ€™s 1,617 in 1982.

Last season he led Conference USA in rushing, averaging 122.4 yards, despite missing the final three games with a foot injury. He has averaged 99.7 yards in three games this year.
A bruising runner with deceptive speed and good hands, Zach has been a coachâ€™s dream, Jones said: â€œHeâ€™s a solid football player, a leader. Everything he does is for the team. Heâ€™s not flashy, just gets it done.â€

At Oxford, Prescott had even better stats than his older brother. He was selected â€œMr. Footballâ€ in Michigan his senior year. He also won two state titles in wrestling.

Prescott orally committed to SMU before his senior season. He arrived ready to play running back or linebacker.

â€œIâ€™m pretty sure they wanted me at running back the whole time,â€ he said. â€œTheyâ€™re both fun positions for me.â€

Joe Line played football, baseball and track in high school. He said the kids get their athleticism from their mother, Kathy, a former swimmer and volleyball player. Joe and Kathy met in grade school.

The Linesâ€™ older daughter, 23-year-old Chelsey, played basketball, and her 17-year-old sister, Madison, is a volleyball standout at Oxford. The youngest, 16-year-old Ben, could also be headed to SMU. He plays tailback and linebacker, just like the Lines in front of him.

â€œWe donâ€™t send them to football camps in the summer or anything like that. We just want them to have fun,â€ Joe said. â€œPeople come over and say your house is very intimidating with all these trophies.â€

here's another article describing Prescott as Mr. Football for the state of Michigan: http://www.clarkstonnews.com/Articl....113121-sub-Prescott-Line-is-Mr-Football.html

and finally, here's a video that shows some highlights and soundbites about the kind of player the younger Line is:

[video=youtube;VcI9TS-DBgo]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcI9TS-DBgo[/video]

white lightning · Oct 15, 2012

What a family. Athletic, nice looking and very smart. They remind me of the Gerhart family and I'm sure that are many others just like them. I really liked the video Jimmy. Thanks for keeping us updated. I'm hoping that Zach Line gets a serious look by some NFL Teams in the next month or two. He should put up some nice numbers at the combine to help his draft status. I also look forward to seeing Prescott continue in the family tradition of football excellence.

white is right · Oct 16, 2012

white lightning said:
What a family. Athletic, nice looking and very smart. They remind me of the Gerhart family and I'm sure that are many others just like them. I really liked the video Jimmy. Thanks for keeping us updated. I'm hoping that Zach Line gets a serious look by some NFL Teams in the next month or two. He should put up some nice numbers at the combine to help his draft status. I also look forward to seeing Prescott continue in the family tradition of football excellence.

I found Pro Football Weekly has an online video channel on Youtube. They have a short segment on 2013 NFL prospects and Zach Line is brought up. They graded him out as 3rd round prospect....http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96fx...3u4099X88BzC7HzEyk&index=6&feature=plpp_video

dwid · Oct 16, 2012

3rd round grade is pretty good considering they put Gerhart as a 2nd rounder and he played in a more notable conference, although Matt Forte and Chris Johnson played in the same conference as Line, and Johnson wound up going 24th overall. Forte had the size and the speed and went in the 2nd, although both kind of came out of nowhere for their final year as runningbacks, Forte with 2400 yards from scrimmage and Johnson with 1900 Chris Johnson barely averaged 4 ypc his first 3 years in college, one season at 3.9. He was projected a 2nd to 3rd rounder before his combine with the 4.24 40 and all the other stuff

Zach Line always amazes me when I watch him play, so quick for such a big guy. I like how they are getting him involved more in the passing game, 20 receptions is higher than any other season. That was one knock on Gerhart, is that he wouldn't be able to catch, even though it was obvious that he could. June Jones said he probably runs a 4.6, I am sure he can get below that, hopefully low 4.5. NFLdraftscout has him at 4.73 first position FB 2nd position RB/H-back, what a joke. Hopefully he doesn't get screwed over.

Zach Line FB??

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