Five-star OL Zach Rice's journey comes full circle in Orlando

ORLANDO – This week has been a full-circle experience for Lynchburg (Va.) Liberty Christian Academy offensive lineman Zach Rice.

The 6-foot-5, 290-pound offensive tackle played in the Under Armour Futures game as an eighth-grader. The weeks that followed were the beginning of his college recruitment. He has returned to the event as a North Carolina signee. Zach is the No. 14 overall prospect in the On3 Consensus rankings for the class of 2022.

The top-ranked player in the state of Virginia is one of the team captains this week. He remembers a lot of the players he played with the first time around. Many of them have not been able to return as he has.

Zach has found motivation in a lot of things throughout his career. Finding a way to continue to develop as a player to make it back to the Under Armour All-American Game as a senior was one of the major points of stimulus.

“I made a promise to myself to come back,” Zach said. “I saw how cool the Under Armour Game was the first time. I’ve seen a lot of people fall off since the eighth grade. It meant a lot to me to stay on track and be here. This was motivation. These are the top players around. Eighth grade was more about developing and stuff.”

Zach Rice taking in the final moments before his next step

Zach will have a quick turnaround to kick off his future in Chapel Hill. He is set to be an early enrollee and will be moving in on Jan. 7.

For Zach and his mother Mary Rice, this week has been a time of reflection on the future as well as the past.

“It’s been pretty surreal,” Mary said. “Knowing that it’s been coming this whole time, I’m so happy about where he’s going to go and seeing his next chapter and what that’s going to look like for him. I’m also going to miss him at the same time. It’s somewhat of a mixed bag, but I’m super happy for him.”

Mary remembers the long drives on weekends to practices, basketball games, camps and college visits that came in between the first trip to an Under Armour game.

Those long trips have been a fixture in the Rice household routine for years.

“That’s my guy, we’ve always been close,” Mary said. “This was our weekends every weekend. Between football and travel basketball, I’ve coached him in basketball and I’m more of a basketball coach. I’ve learned football, been a team mom, and all of that. This has been our life. To see him go this far and achieve his goals has been amazing.”

During his commitment ceremony, Zach was candid about his relationship with his mother and his grandmother stating that they were both his motivation. When he made his decision public, Zach placed a North Carolina hat on his grandmother’s head.

“My grandma and my mom are all I have,” Zach told On3. “They’re my motivation. That’s why I think I push so hard. That’s the great thing about being out here. You win some and you lose some, but I’m getting better every rep. I know I’m going to be ready for UNC.”