Dartmouth's Walz is ready for a repeat

In going coast to coast and moving from lineman to linebacker, Dartmouth senior Zack Walz has become one of the top performers in Ivy League football. Walz's emergence helped turn the Dartmouth program back into the powerhouse that has won a league-leading 17 titles. After completing a perfect season a year ago, the unanimous 1996 first-team All-Ivy honoree is considered one of the top candidates for the prestigious Asa S. Bushnell Cup. It was not easy, as the 6'5", 210-pound star worked hard to become a key player. As a football player from Malibu, Calif., Walz was a part of the St. Francis High School team that won back-to-back-to-back state championships at the state's highest level. Although not bragging of any glamorous awards won in high school, Walz's academic work earned him recognition from Ivy League schools. Hoping to get into a good school on his side of the country, Walz was approached by the foreigners from the East. "I had never really heard of Dartmouth," Walz said. "I was pretty content staying in California. I thought about playing football, but I was more concerned getting into a pretty decent school." Walz had little problem making the change to the college game and felt at ease with Dartmouth coach John Lyons' decision to move him to linebacker. "In high school, I was basically a rush end," Walz said. "I stood up and every play I just rushed. The only difference was just getting the reads down. I give a lot of credit to my coaches. Some of the techniques and stuff they implemented made it real easy to pick it up." On the other hand, Walz found the transition to the East Coast tough. Besides his spring break trip to Cancun, it was his first time outside the state of California. "It was definitely one of the most difficult transitions I have ever made," Walz said. "I was very house broken. I actually considered transferring. I had transfer papers to UCLA, Cal-Poly and Santa Barbara. I stuck with it because football was going well. Everything turned out for the better." Knowing Walz was a good football player, Lyons was pleasantly surprised by the improvement in Walz's work ethic. Coming in a poorly proportioned player, Walz put in the time in the weight room to improve his build. "He came in here as a guy who was not sure what it was all about, but who liked to play," Lyons said. "He has a very different body type because he is very tall and lean. He has worked very hard the last several years, and he has really increased his strength." Receiving playing time in his freshman year, Walz earned the starting position in '95. The team went 7-2-1, and Walz picked up first team All-Ivy honors. His presence had been felt around the league. With his early success in football, everything else seemed to fall in place for the Dartmouth standout. Walz started enjoying his time in isolated Hanover, N.H., a far cry from the Bay area. "Once I really started to apply myself and to the college and get to know the guys on the football team, I was happy with my decision," Walz said. "I am glad I came here. I got into a fraternity and all of that stuff. Everything started to gel nicely." For Walz and Dartmouth, everything came together last season as the Big Green finished the season perfect at 10-0. Walz led the Ivy League champions in tackles for the second year in a row. Racking up 111 total tackles, including 65 unassisted, and five sacks, the Dartmouth star was unanimously selected first-team All-Ivy. Highlighting the year for Walz was the season opener against Penn and the final Ivy game against Brown. Being the first game of the season, the Big Green linebacker remembers each team committing a multitude of mistakes, but felt Dartmouth's perseverance gave them the 24-22 victory. Against the Bears, Walz felt his team's preparation was key in their 27-24 win. "We went into the Brown game under a lot of pressure," Walz said. "We knew Jason McCullough was a great quarterback and they had some great players on their offense. We knew we would have to play the same way we had the rest of the season. We worked really hard before. We barely squeaked that one out." Lyons believes many qualities allow Walz to be such a dynamic player. The Dartmouth coach credits the linebacker for being able to get after the quarterback, play on a tight end and determine the opposing teams formation by his very presence. "We look to take advantage of his ability to make plays," Lyons said. "We turn him loose a lot and let him go because he is a very instinctive player and covers an awful lot of ground. For a tall, lean kid he can really bend down and explode on people. He always had a knack for getting through tiny creases and making something happen." Humble about his own talent, the senior Dartmouth tri-captain loves the game of football. As a student of the sport, Walz uses his talents to the best of his ability, including his mind. "People say I am pretty fast," Walz said. "I am really not that fast, maybe just a little quicker. I attribute success to understanding. I study opposing teams a lot. Being able to read things quickly is my best attribute." Opening the season this weekend against Penn, Walz will be fresh off his preseason injuries. Feeling that the team had a lackadaisical preseason, Walz used his senior status to make sure the team was ready and understood the importance of the game Saturday. "We had a meeting with the team the other day, and I was telling the younger guys how the Penn game always seems to dictate the rest of the season for one team or the other," Walz said. Although the Dartmouth senior hopes to someday compete for an NFL starting position, Walz has immediate goals set on a second-straight Ivy League title. Also competing for his third straight first team All-Ivy recognition, the Bushnell Cup candidate will definitely be one to watch in the upcoming Saturdays. "He is a heck of a football player," Lyons said. "He is a real fun player to watch, because he plays the game the way you should play it."

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