Name: Zach Hester
School: Colorado School of Mines
Position: DE
Height: 6-3
Weight: 245
Q: What goals did you set and/or accomplish in your final collegiate season?
Well first goal set was a team goal and that was to win a national championship and for the second in a row we fell one game short. Personal goal was to be an All-American. Being on the D2 Pre Season elite 100 made this goal seem feasible but my stats were not quite there and I was only capable of first team all conference and first team all NFFCC.
Q: What would your coaches and teammates say about the type of player you are?
My coaches and teammates would say I’m a game changer within my role on the team. In some of our biggest moments of the past few years I have forced pivotal fumbles and recovered a fumble in the red zone of the national semifinal game.
Q: When you are studying film, what are the things you focus on to improve your game?
When watching myself I look into how I could effect the play through my techniques and how I can improve those every play. From a scouting the opponent I try to find what the weakness of all the offensive line is so I can work on taking advantage of those weaknesses through preparation in practice that week.
Q: What separates you from the other pro prospects at your position?
My journey to where I am now. I didn’t have a full ride had to take out student loans, work summer jobs, and go to highly accredited university in engineering. I think my work ethic and my problem solving I have developed in my time at Colorado School of Mines sets me apart from everyone in this class not just my position.
Q: What is your offseason plan to train and prepare for professional opportunities?
During the offseason I will be training at Kula Sports Performance in Highlands Ranch, CO. This is the gym Christian McCaffrey has used in the past and I think it will help me be physically prepared to move on to the next level.
Q: What kind of strengths and abilities will you bring to a team that will stand out both on and off the field?
I think I have 2 qualities that standout on and off the field the first being my ability to learn and problem solve. Going to an engineering school they teach us how to work through problems and pick up skills fast. This should help me in learning playbooks and applying skills talked about in film to my play on the field. The second is that I’m a winner and I have won everywhere I have been. In high school I won a state championship my senior year and won conference my junior and senior year. In college I helped my team go to the national championship my junior and senior year as well as winning the region my sophomore year and conference was won every year I was at Mines.
Q: What is your final pitch to the NFL and any other pro leagues?
Anyone who has ever taken a chance on me has been proven right. I would say those people were even pleasantly surprised with what I have to offer to any team.
