Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/99533
PEP TALK chart at last season's start to its 14th 1,000-yard runner by the end. He was strong enough to blast through an opponent's defensive line, speedy enough to outrun the secondary and productive enough that Silas Redd's decision to transfer was less of a blow than expected. Not that Zwinak wants to talk about much of that. Like a lot of running backs, he's always quick to give credit to the offensive line, but he's one of the few who, while doing it, smiles shyly and occasionally blushes. "I don't really know how to describe any of my running," he said. "I just try to go in a straight line. That's what I was always taught – the fastest way to the end zone is in a straight line." Good genes have helped, too. Zwinak's father, B.J., played defensive tackle at Virginia Tech, lettering three times. His mother ran track at North Carolina, twice winning the Atlantic Coast Conference 110-meter hurdle title. "He gets his determination from his dad and his speed from his mom," said Rich Conner, who coached Zwinak at Linganore High School in Mt. Airy, Md. "Let's put it that way. We've had some tough guys here, but at the top of the list is Zach." Toughness came naturally. Like most athletic boys, Zwinak tried a bunch of sports. A little basketball, a little wrestling, a little soccer. "He was too rough for soccer," his mother said, and that's how he ended up on the football field around age 9. Said Thomas, "He was obviously cut out for it." Zwinak immediately wanted to carry the ball, and he quickly made believers of his coaches – youth league, JV, varsity. Said Conner, "He made us look like good coaches." Conner can't remember Zwinak ever losing a yard; he always kept moving forward. And he particularly remembers a 90-yard touchdown in a regional championship game in which Zwinak stiff-armed two defenders, including one who went on to O'Brien relied more heavily on Zwinak as the season went on. BILL O'BRIEN "He's a tough kid. He can run; he's faster than people think he is." play at Maryland, and got the angle and dived into the end zone. Still, recruiting services labeled Patrick Mansell Zwinak a fullback, and plenty of colleges recruited him to play linebacker. Conner said Penn State told Zwinak it had plenty of linebackers, and that he could come in as a running back. And Penn State was only a couple of hours from home, too. Zwinak was sold.