Here is a pretty good article about Zenner's chances in Detroit. It calls out some key components of the caste system. Not a bad read as the author (who appears to be black) seems to be fully supportive of Zach.
http://detroitsportsnation.com/detr...-detroit-lions-next-great-running-back/36493/
"My focus is on doing anything and everything I can to make the team that did sign me happy with its choice, so I hope the Lions are ready, because I see myself contributing for a long time to come."
These solid and direct words came from
the Fox sports post-draft diary of
Detroit Lions undrafted rookie running back
Zach Zenner.
As fog settled over the 2015
NFL draft, I sat idly by as players that weren't drafted began to sign with different teams around the league. I have always been just as fascinated with the unofficial 8th, 9th and 10th rounds of the draft as much as the official seven before that. This is where the good general managers truly run away from the pack. Finding diamonds in the rough like a seasoned miner with an eye for sparkle. Like any lifelong NFL crazy, I like to play the part of talent scout and seek out these precious hidden stones. One player I had a sharp eye on since his junior season (I watched the September 21, 2013 game in which he torched
Nebraska for 200 yards and 2 TD's) was a shifty, athletic, little-known phenom from the mid-sized
South Dakota State University in the prairies of the Great Plains.
Zach Zenner grew up in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metropolitan area where he made a name for himself while starring for the Eagan High School Wildcats on his way to becoming a finalist his senior season for Mr. Football in the state of Minnesota.
It's not entirely known why (probably for similar reasons he fell in this year's draft), but he wasn't heavily recruited as a prep and ended up signing with the SDSU Jackrabbits out of high school. The rest of his collegiate story is stuff of legend. During times when rushing for over 2,000 yards one time is an extraordinary accomplishment on it's own, Zenner went on to do it in his final three seasons in the
NCAA FCS - the only player to ever conquer such a feat. Some draft experts had him being drafted as early as the 4th-5th rounds but he was passed on 256 times and a deal was struck post-draft with the Detroit Lions.
Now, in the mind of a passive and "intelligent" NFL fan the story of Zenner ends sooner rather than later. Naysayers have mentioned his stiff hips and lack of acceleration. They will speak of his one-gear speed and small-school origination. Finally, as much as many people like to refuse to admit, his status as a white player playing a black dominant position has at least a small part in many not seeing him evolving into a big time professional halfback in the NFL (running back and cornerback are probably the least diverse positions in the league).
However, call it a epiphany if you will but I have a good, if not great feeling about the prospect of Zenner in this league.
I happen to judge two major factors in this reasoning considerably higher than other analysts. Production and mental fortitude. With two minor components being durability and athleticism. I apologize to standard thinking but I don't have it in me to ignore 6,078 rushing yards and 58 touchdowns in three seasons of football. Those type of stats spell out F-O-O-T-B-A-L-L P-L-A-Y-E-R. His intelligence also has a unwavering affect on my opinion. He majored in biology in college and has aspirations to become a surgeon if his NFL dreams don't pan out. The fact that he is keeping medical school in hindsight while not giving up on the sport he loves is a testament to his maturity and is actually a rare reality in most young player's lives. He played in all 52 games in his South Dakota State Jackrabbit career and had an amazing track record of taking care of the football (fumbled only once his senior season).
In a sports culture where every white player not named Justin James Watt is seen as lacking athleticism (see Can't Jump, White Man), Zenner low-key posted the seventh-best pSPARQ score (the method in which Nike training measures athleticism in pro prospects) among draft eligible running backs. So the guy has the goods.