University of Connecticut Athletics
Scott Makes Move to Running Back
4/3/2018 12:00:00 AM | Football
UConn Athletic Communications
STORRS, Conn. --- When UConn assistant head football coach Terry Richardson speaks, Zavier Scott listens.
“Coach Richardson likes to tell us that football is all common sense … it’s a common-sense sport,” the redshirt freshman said. “There’s something logical behind everything.”
So, it seemed only logical that when the UConn coaching staff looked at the Huskies’ 2018 roster before the start of spring football and saw an over-abundance of wide receivers and an under-abundance of running backs, that there was some switching to be done. It was just common sense.
And when it came to deciding which of the players to switch, it also made sense to give Scott a chance – a bright, 6-1, 205-pounder, with 4.3 speed, who had played running back earlier in his football career.
A few weeks into spring football, quickly heading toward the climatic spring game on April 14, the move is paying off. Scott has had an outstanding spring.
“At first, this spring, it was kind of hard to get the hang of it because I hadn’t played running back in about a year and I wasn’t really coached as a running back,” Scott said. “Even in high school, I didn’t know the proper footwork and all that. But the adjustment really hasn’t been too bad. In the beginning, it was a lot to remember, but once you get the hang of it …
“It’s like a new world, but it’s easier to get the ball, so that’s more fun. And there are still some plays where I run out like a receiver.”
Although brought to UConn primarily as a wide out, the Husky coaches knew all about Scott’s versatility.
“I was more of a wide receiver, but even at the first camp, they had me doing some running back type things,” Scott explained. “Now, they actually moved me to running back before spring football started. I don’t know the specific reasons, but I’m guessing it’s because of our new offense and how there’s less receiver positions and we have a lot of receivers --- we didn’t lose any receivers this year, but we lost running backs, so we had to adjust. I always had a feeling it might happen and I really don’t have a problem with it.”
Considering the moves Scott has made in his life, the move to running back should hardly be noticeable.
Scott began playing football as a youngster in Fort Hood, Texas, but as part of a military family, he moved to Europe before his junior year of high school. He continued to play at Vilseck High School in Germany, but it is obviously difficult to get the attention of college programs from across the ocean. By February of his senior year, he had no scholarship offers and was considering trying to make a college program as a walk-on.
Two fortunate events, however, helped change Scott’s path.
The first was his discovery by an organization that helps connect overseas student-athletes and college programs, even to the extent of sponsoring a tour, which takes prospective student-athletes to U.S. college campuses.
The second event was actually a number of events --- namely the four events in which Scott competed at the 2017 DODEA (Department of Defense Educational Activity)-Europe Track and Field Championships – the 100 meters, which he won in 11.11 seconds, the 200 meters, which he won in 22.47 seconds, 400 meters, which he won in 50.62 seconds, and he anchored Vilseck’s victorious 400-meter relay team. As a result, he was named the 2017 Stars and Stripes boys track and field Athlete of the Year.
With his reputation for speed cemented, Scott joined the aforementioned tour at Ohio State in Columbus. But while the bigger football programs wanted Scott to either wait until the Spring, 2018, semester to enroll or spend a year in prep school to evaluate him further, UConn wasted no time in offering him a scholarship beginning in the fall of 2017.
One official visit by Scott and his parents was all it took.
“UConn was the first school that started talking to me, actually wanting to see me play, see me work out,” Scott said. “They got me to a camp and when I came here and when I met the coaches, met the players, it seemed like a really good environment. The coaches are still the same, really nice, really helpful and I trust them.
“It was tempting. If I sat out, I probably would have got some offers from bigger football schools, but it was more a matter of where I felt the best, where my family felt I would fit the best. It definitely turned out great.”
Scott redshirted during the 2017 season, and the year has served him well.
“The redshirt year is a good year because it helps you grow as a player, grow as an athlete and a student,” Scott said. “But it feels really good knowing I have the chance now.”
Scott is one of four children, with an older sister now living in Colorado, and a younger sister and brother with his parents still living in Germany. They plan to make the trip to Connecticut this fall to catch a couple of UConn games. He is confident they will see a team much-improved from last season.
“I can really tell the difference in the team this year,” Scott said. “I can’t put my finger on exactly what it is, but I know the team is giving off a different vibe --- more of a brotherhood. Everybody’s bought in. We’re all here for each other, talking to each other, coaching each other, helping each other, getting each other better. It just feels better all-around. It’s made me even more happy about the decision I made.”
