The Daily Campus

Issue date: 4/7/08 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Nick Hart Zach Hurd, a 6-foot-7 freshman guard, is making a name for himself at spring practice.

After two weeks of practice, head coach Randy Edsall didn't like what he saw from the offensive line and wanted to find a way to become more physical in the trenches.

He didn't have to search very long. At 6-foot-7, 305 pounds, Zach Hurd wasn't hard to find.

Hurd, along with fellow redshirt freshmen Moe Petrus, shot up the depth chart this week and claimed the starting roles at right and left guard, respectively. According to Edsall, the duo will remain there from here on out - even when Alex LaMagdelaine, the starter at right guard for nine games a year ago, returns from a knee injury in the next few weeks.

"I think I've said since the end of last year that we have to get more physical and be more aggressive up front," Edsall said. "Through six practices, I saw those two guys doing the things that I want to see out of the offensive line."

Mike Hicks, who was projected to take over at left guard, has made yet another position switch, this time back to tackle, and will spend the rest of spring battling Dan Ryan for a spot at right tackle.

"After watching Mike Hicks, I thought he was more suited to be a tackle than he was a guard," Edsall said. "But I like the [physicality] of Zach and Moe."

After spending last season as a backup tackle that saw most of his in-game action on the field goal unit, Hurd, a Waterford native, was caught off guard when the coaching staff told him of the position change - especially with only one day's notice.

"I had to jump and learn the plays the night before," Hurd said. "I was in the book all night trying to learn the plays."

But the redshirt freshman couldn't be too upset with the move.

"I'm just trying to play," Hurd said. "[Position] doesn't matter to me."

Besides, he spent the entire offseason for an opportunity like this.

Hurd said he put a lot of time in the weight room in the three months following the Meineke Car Care Bowl, trying to show the coaching staff the hard work he was willing to put in. Listed at 297 pounds at the end of last year, he was able to add about 10 more to an already massive frame.

Already one of the largest players on the team, it may be difficult to notice the difference, but Edsall certainly took note of his improvements.

Continued...

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