Zach Line FB??

Bronk

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Zach Line needs just 60 rushing yards to reach the 1,000-yard mark for the third consecutive season.

Line is averaging 104.4 yards per game and ought to get it this Saturday against Southern Miss. He has 194 carries in 2012 for 940 yards and six touchdowns.
 

Leonardfan

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Line has quietly put together another solid year. I hope his production gets him an invite to the senior bowl and combine. I know the chances are slim that he doesn't get screwed at the next level but it would be good to have another white RB in the NFL to root for.
 

FootballDad

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Line has quietly put together another solid year. I hope his production gets him an invite to the senior bowl and combine. I know the chances are slim that he doesn't get screwed at the next level but it would be good to have another white RB in the NFL to root for.
Zach hasn't done this any more "quietly" than any other D1 tailback, he is just ignored by the media who are busy promoting whatever black scrub has a good week. If he averaged 200 yards a game, I'm certain that most DWFs still wouldn't know who he is, as he wouldn't get a mention on "Sports Center".
 
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There is an interesting article on draftdaddy about Line and his pro chances. Some scouts call his 4.54 40 time pedestrian :eyebrows: and the fact that he has no juke moves ( joke ) and he gets all of his yards off of draw plays so he should be a fullback at the next level.
On the plus side they say he gets no momentum lined up as a fullback to the line and he has no fb or tight ends to block for him. Its an interesting read but the author can't seem to fathom why in his senior year in Michigan he had a great season and was so lightly recruited. What could it be?????????? Its amazing how many times we see this sheisen and the DWf's still argue the best pay.Riiiggght!
 

dwid

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There is an interesting article on draftdaddy about Line and his pro chances. Some scouts call his 4.54 40 time pedestrian :eyebrows: and the fact that he has no juke moves ( joke ) and he gets all of his yards off of draw plays so he should be a fullback at the next level.
On the plus side they say he gets no momentum lined up as a fullback to the line and he has no fb or tight ends to block for him. Its an interesting read but the author can't seem to fathom why in his senior year in Michigan he had a great season and was so lightly recruited. What could it be?????????? Its amazing how many times we see this sheisen and the DWf's still argue the best pay.Riiiggght!

Its not a real article, well it is real but just bleacher report nonsense, and I doubt he talked to any scouts as most of his information has come off of message boards like draftcountdown and went to nfldraftscouts for the estimated time on him. I doubt he has seen one single SMU game if he thinks that Zach Line has no agility. His agility is amazing, and the fact that he is such a big guy makes it even more amazing. He doesn't get all of his yards on draw plays , or even most. Id say at best half. They line up in the pistol often and run the same types of plays you would run out of single back sets. They also get creative when he is in shotgun. When they aren't in the actual pistol they kind of have a hybrid pistol shotgun formation. Line is a couple of yards behind the qb but he is lined up to the side, still, he has to stop and isn't running downhill at full speed when getting the handoff, but he has some momentum. Most shotgun formations have the back on the side. They also have the runs out of shotgun where he can go left or right when they fake the screen pass and have pulling lineman paving the way (Patriots should take note of this).

The reasons teams don't use shotgun all the time is backs struggle to run out of this, even the best like Adrian Peterson, and they can't do it consistently. Most can't even pass block despite having endless amounts of "athleticism". Line can do this, although defenders will be closing in much quicker on the draw play like you see with Woodhead now, but if they used creativity it wouldn't matter. However, unlike Woodhead, Line is a big guy and could plow forward for more yards.

Most of the time on draws the blocking isn't that great, several defenders beat the linemen and he is juking around to find a hole to go through. His moves in the open field are great, sometimes I wish he would use his power more.

and the criticism about him getting ANY yards off of draw plays is invalid, because you might as well drop every back who runs out of some type of option offense, most use the basic zone read, if the elmos comes at the qb, the qb hands it off and the back goes straight up the gut, if he goes after the back then the qb takes off with it. Of course there are many variations, but this is a play backs in those systems get plenty of yards from and many plays that aren't conventional NFL style runs. Ben Tate was one example, I didn't see any traditional runs when I looked at his highlight tape, but he has adapted and worked well with the zone read, although his vision isn't as good as Foster's, and he is considered more of the bruising back (timed at 4.4something) while Foster he more of the homerun guy at 4.6something

I mean every team schemes to get favorable matchups. The article states that he doesn't have to face a crowded box because of the pass heavy offense. Almost no back has to face a crowded box in any of these spread offenses. When they see a crowded line they throw the ball, when they are back further they run. Teams that are run heavy just add extra blockers for this and use the deep pass so defenders don't try to cheat up for the run.

What part of the article was interesting? the fact that he had no clue what he was talking about? or do you find everything interesting?
 
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I find lots of things interesting. I think Line will actually get drafted. He will probably be labeled the poor man's Brian Leonard.
 

Wes Woodhead

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I dont hink he will get drafted at all, but I hope Im wrong. The running back situation got a lot better these last few years, but its almost as if there is a conscious effort to regain order, and put whitey back in his place in that position.
 

celticdb15

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I dont hink he will get drafted at all, but I hope Im wrong. The running back situation got a lot better these last few years, but its almost as if there is a conscious effort to regain order, and put whitey back in his place in that position.


From what it sounds like a lot of media types are doing their best to discredit talented white runners like Rex Burkhead and Zach Line. They project them both as late round picks when in reality both guys should be drafted no later than the 3rd round based on talent and porduction. To me it all depends on whether these guys are able to garner invites to the combine and show their true talents to the world.
 

Bronk

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Only someone who has never seen Zach Line run the ball would say he can't manuver and doesn't have speed. The guy has a great instinct for the open field and the ability to cut, run and power his way into it.

The problem is that SMU loads its whole running game on Zach's back. Coach June Jones is an advocate of the Run-N-Shoot (chuck and duck) and has stated the Mustangs have essentially one running play and one back to run it.

Zach would fit in well with the Houston Texans who operate a Split-T style running game.
 

Jimmy Chitwood

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Line is having a big day. he already has 3 touchdowns on the ground, and they're just starting the 4th quarter.
 

Leonardfan

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Maybe my email a few weeks ago to Pauline regarding Connor Vernon made him reevaluate his opinions on white players:

Zach Line/RB/SMU: Line was considered a potential third-round choice at the start of the season and met expectations as a senior. He's a large, hard-charging ball carrier with terrific vision and football instincts. Adept at carrying the ball as well as catching it, the 230-pound athlete is averaging 4.8 yards on 235 carries this season and has 31 receptions. Line offers potential in the NFL as a feature back for a power running game or fullback in a west coast offense.

Read More: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/20...ek-13-risers-sliders/index.html#ixzz2DGLlObdL

 

icsept

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Watching the SMU/Tulsa game, the commentators were talking about Line's NFL potential. Supposedly June Jones said he would be a "Tom Rathman" type player. Rathman was an excellent prototypical fullback who led the way for Roger Craig and got a lot of receptions out of the backfield in Bill Walsh's system. (Rathman was caste slotted as a fullback although he was a tremendous multi-sport athlete, state champion high jumper and high YPC at Nebraska despite limited opportunities.) It's interesting that June Jones would make such a comparison, since Line is not a fullback, does not block for tailbacks, and does not get many receptions. Of course, June Jones originally used Line as a fullback until his talents as a feature back became undeniable. Why isn't Jones promoting Line's ability as a feature back in the NFL?
 

celticdb15

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That's interesting or maybe June is implying Rathman should have been a tailback.
 
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