The Wolfpacker

Nov-Dec 2021

The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports

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NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2021 ■ 23 BY MATT CARTER ne of NC State offensive line coach John Garrison's favorite parts of the job is the interpersonal relation- ships he can develop with his players. To that end, he'll host dinners for the Wolfpack offensive linemen at his house, and, as one can imagine, a feast for a handful of 300-pounders is not an inexpensive affair. "It's well worth it," Garrison explained during an appearance on the Dave Doeren Radio Show. While the experience for Garrison, his fam- ily and the players exceeds the value of the meal, the coach still could not help but won- der if it might be cheaper to just fly up Deme- trio Zavala, an award-winning chef who has won Food Network's "Chopped" TV show. What's the connection? Zavala's son is Chandler Zavala, a newcomer to Garrison's offensive line room who quickly found a home with the Wolfpack after leaving Divi- sion II's Fairmont State as a grad transfer. Zavala's father, the son admits, had a big role in his unusual path to becoming a football star. With his dad's help, Zavala gained 60 pounds between his freshman and sophomore years at Fairmont State. Demetrio Zavala "eats very clean, even though his food has a lot of cholesterol in it sometimes," his son said while breaking into a smile. "He gave me the ins and outs of what to eat, what I shouldn't eat. … He would make sure I ate at least four times a day, then I would have snacks like protein shakes." Football was not Chandler Zavala's first love. When he was at Forest Park High in Woodbridge, Va., basketball and soccer were his original sports. His grandparents were the ones who loved football. Unfortu- nately, they passed away while Zavala was approaching his senior year. "That junior going into my senior year, I decided to give football a shot in honor of them," Zavala recalled. The tall, lean Zavala — he stood 6-5 and weighed about 250 pounds at the time — didn't fit the definition of an instant success in his new sport, but one small school saw enough to give him an opportunity. Fairmont State is a Division II program in the small town of Fairmont, W.Va., lo- cated in the northern part of the state near its border with Pennsylvania with a popula- tion of less than 20,000. The school itself has about 3,500 un- dergrads and is not known as a gridiron powerhouse. Before Zavala arrived, it had not had an All-American since 1994 or a 1,000-yard rusher since 2007. But for Zavala, the school represented his best option. "It worked out," he said. "I only had one year of experience playing football. Fair- mont State took a chance on me when they didn't have to. I took that." As appreciative as Zavala was, when Division II canceled its 2020 football sea- son due to COVID-19, he did not have any hesitation about entering the transfer por- tal. Considering that he was an honorable mention All-American in 2018 when he helped clear the way for Fairmont State's first 1,000-yard rusher in 11 years, the big man was a popular target. Virginia, Charlotte, East Carolina, To- ledo and Western Kentucky also offered him, but NC State had an advantage. "My mother moved here last year. She lives in Raleigh," Zavala noted. "My grand- mother is only three hours away. She's in Virginia. My dad is in Florida, and he travels all the time. It was kind of perfect." As expected, there have been adjustments while Zavala made the transition from a Division II school in northern West Virginia to an ACC program in the Triangle. "I would say maybe the hottest you'll get [in Fairmont] is maybe like 80 degrees, and there will be a little breeze," Zavala said. "Here in North Carolina, this is just straight humidity." There was also the matter of getting used to the size and speed of Power Five defen- sive lines. "At the Division II level, you have competi- tion, and a lot of people play at the D-II level," Zavala said. "But when you come to the D-I level, everybody across the board can play." However, Zavala has found himself fitting in, and after a Week 3 performance against Furman in which he served up 10 pancake blocks on just 45 plays, he was named the ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week. Through Oct. 11, he ranked 28th among guards with at least 300 snaps played with an overall PFF grade of 71.5, while his pass blocking mark of 79.5 was 22nd. "Unfortunately, we've only got him for one year," Garrison noted. "I'd love to have him for a couple more, because I think he's going to be a big-time player. He's physical, he's strong, very conscientious of his work. "He's an intelligent player, too. He's only going to get better confidence-wise." Off the field, Zavala has also proven a natural with the offensive linemen, and for reasons far beyond having the cool dad who did indeed fly up the Thursday before NC State's win over Louisiana Tech on Oct. 2 to cook at Garrison's house. Garrison recalled Zavala asking him be- fore he was set to arrive in Raleigh about how he could connect with his new team- mates. Garrison simply told him, "You are going to fit in fine if you are who you are." Because as Garrison summed up: "He is a tremendous person." ■ O

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