Zacharia Looks for Big Year to Attract Division I Schools

Joe Zacharia is not a patient person--in or out of uniform.

When he assumes his position at inside linebacker for Valley College, Zacharia paws at the turf as he anticipates the center snap, his eyes riveted on any movement that would enable him to stuff a ballcarrier at the line of scrimmage.

And like a fourth-and-one situation with the game on the line, this season is now or never for Zacharia’s playing future. It is his last chance to attract a Division I scholarship offer. “There’s no time to rest,” he says. “Everything rides on this year.”

Zacharia, a sophomore, wants to play football in the Pacific 10. It is his longtime goal to play for USC. “I know I can play there,” he says.

Valley Coach Chuck Ferrero flatly says that Zacharia will be a Division I player.

“He plays the game like it’s supposed to be played,” Ferrero says. “He’s a big hitter and a physical kid and his aggressiveness is infectious.”

Zacharia has been described in this manner before. At Canyon High, he was an All-Southern Section nose guard. He had a key role on Cowboy teams that won three straight Northwestern Conference championships and compiled a winning streak of 38 games, which was extended to 46 after Zacharia graduated.

But his marginal size (6-0, 200 pounds) and marginal grades (mostly C’s) combined to keep major college recruiters away.

Zacharia was the only member of the South team in the 1986 Shrine Game who didn’t have a Division I scholarship offer. Cal Lutheran, a member of the Division II Western Football Conference, was the only team interested, and that deal was contingent on Zacharia’s final-semester grades at Canyon. He opted instead to play at Valley.

“He didn’t have the grades to go to Division I,” Canyon Coach Harry Welch says. “He was a C student. A lot of people think that because he didn’t play Division I he was not all that good. They were wrong.”

Welch played Zacharia at nose guard partly because Canyon already had two qualified linebackers in Randy Austin and Cary Caufield. Austin plays for UCLA, and Caufield was appointed to West Point but resigned last October.

Zacharia, who has bulked up to 225 pounds, has handled the transition to linebacker the same way he fights off a block--using his instincts.

“Nose guard and linebacker are probably the most instinctual positions on the football team,” says Bob Meyers, Valley’s defensive coordinator. “He just moved from being on the ball to off of the ball. The thing that was difficult in the beginning was reading pass offenses and dropping back into his zone.”

With the position change came added responsibility.

“The inside linebacker usually leads the defense,” he says. “In our case, it definitely does. I’ve got good reactions to the ball. I’ve got a nose for it.”

Zacharia made 75 tackles last season and had 10 sacks. He also caused four fumbles, had four interceptions and blocked three kicks, including two that were recovered for touchdowns.

“He’ll probably be one of our team captains,” Meyers says. “He’s a leader by example. He demands excellence of other players. And he’s easy to coach because he has a good sense about what he needs to do.”

Zacharia promises to personally motivate the entire defense.

“The type of person I am, if I’m excited then everybody around me is excited, and if I’m down then everybody gets down,” he says. “I was always an intense person and I’ve always been able to motivate guys.”

With his mind still set on a Division I scholarship, Zacharia shouldn’t have any trouble getting up for a game.

Zacharia needn’t feel too much pressure, however. Washington State, Pacific and Arizona have already inquired about him.

“Four-year schools know about him based on his freshman year and there are some schools interested in him,” Meyers says. “But he’ll still be able to go some place even if he doesn’t have a great year.

“An average year for Joe is still a great year by other linebackers’ standards.”