Kornacki: Gentry's Move from Passer to Pass-Catcher Paying Big Dividends
12/29/2017 10:35:00 AM | Football, Features
By Steve Kornacki
TAMPA, Fla. -- Zach Gentry was the University of Michigan's top receiver over the last three games and is on a roll now. However, Gentry admits that even he wondered about switching from quarterback to tight end two years ago.
He was an elite passer and runner, rated the No. 9 quarterback in the nation by ESPN.com at Albuquerque El Dorado High, and he had committed to the Texas Longhorns before coach Jim Harbaugh was hired at U-M and turned his head.
When Harbaugh visited Gentry and his family in New Mexico, they sampled the head coach's unique approach to recruiting.
"I was on his team in mini-golf and we won," said Gentry. "I was on his team in bowling and we won. He was pretty good at both of those things."
They connected quickly, but choosing the Wolverines wasn't so much a case of Gentry getting swept off his feet as it was using logic.
"Coach Harbaugh and the staff he brought in made it an attractive place," said Gentry. "When I visited, it was a big-time environment, and there are only so many schools that are anything like Michigan. Just the staff, with its NFL experience, was significant."
Harbaugh brought a reputation for developing top quarterbacks, and Gentry bought in.
However, before his freshman season ended, Harbaugh and the offensive staff had a proposal for him prior to Citrus Bowl practices. They wanted him to switch to tight end.
"Maybe at first it didn't make a whole lot of sense to me," said Gentry, now 6-foot-7 and 250 pounds, having gained about 20 pounds since the move. "I was kind of questioning it. But that was just because I was so used to doing something for so long.
"But now it's definitely a lot more gratifying. I'm just putting in all the hard work and believing in the coaches for believing in me that I would be able to produce."
Gentry celebrates his first career touchdown catch this season at Purdue.
Gentry received All-Big Ten honorable mention in a media vote after this season, and he has successfully made the transition from passer to pass-catcher and blocker.
"Our quarterback room was pretty deep when I first got here," said Gentry, "and Jake Rudock (now with the Detroit Lions) and John O'Korn had just come in. There were Wilton Speight and all those other guys. I just thought they saw my place and my body type and connected the dots a little bit.
"Basically, I was a big-body guy and moved around really well. They said, 'There are ways that you can help the team more immediately. There's only one quarterback in the game, but we play with several tight ends.' And then it did make sense to me, and it's paying off now."
Gentry, who had been a quarterback since second grade, threw for 3,734 yards and 27 touchdowns while running for 1,013 yards and 26 touchdowns at El Dorado.
"Quarterback was the only position I'd ever played my whole life," said Gentry. "So, it was really weird at first, especially that first year, getting used to everything.
"But during camp this past offseason and last summer, I emerged enough to show myself that I could do this at this level."
It wasn't an unprecedented move at Michigan, where a talented quarterback named Jay Riemersma was moved to tight end when Lloyd Carr was the head coach. Though, a rotator cuff injury was the impetus for the move rather than getting stuck behind future NFL quarterbacks Elvis Grbac and Todd Collins on the depth chart. Riemersma went on to play nine years in the NFL with the Buffalo Bills and Pittsburgh Steelers.
Gentry, who went from uniform No. 10 to No. 83, was fortunate in that he was going from one position of strength to another position of strength in regard to talent development.
Harbaugh also is known for producing outstanding NFL tight ends, and Gentry should follow Michigan's two-time All-America tight end Jake Butt into the pro ranks someday.
"Oh, man, I learned a lot from Jake," said Gentry. "He was the one who was right there with me when I first made the transition. He took me under his wing, like he did a lot of guys in the room, and was able to just give us tips and pointers. He started for so long for this team that he was so savvy on the field. He knew exactly where to be and when to be there. He knew where other people were supposed to be and shared that with us."
Gentry has 15 catches for 276 yards and two touchdowns and has already become a downfield threat. His 18.4 yards per catch are the most for any Wolverine with more than two receptions this season.
"Having a long stride and being a mobile quarterback," said Gentry, "those things have definitely helped me in catching the deep ball. I can run fast out there, and I attribute a lot of that to basketball. I played a lot of that growing up and loved basketball."
Gentry (left) has improved his blocking under the tutelage of assistant coach Greg Frey (right).
Blocking was different, though. He'd never been asked to do it. He said Greg Frey, hired this season to coach tight ends and tackles, has impacted him greatly in that area. Frey, who had a previous coaching stint at Michigan, has sent more than 20 players to NFL rosters.
"His knowledge of the run game is incredible because he played offensive line in college (as a member of Florida State's 1992 national champions) and has studied blocking for so long," said Gentry. "He brought an edge of physicality to me and my game, and that was something I hadn't grasped before. He was able to do things to get me to go in there and hit more.
"That's definitely been the biggest adjustment. Getting good at it is a combination of physicality and technique. You can be too physical, but if you're not taking the right steps or striking the right spot, you are going to get blown out of the way. So, you have to master both and try to get as perfect as you can at both. I've still got to work on putting a few pounds on, too, and getting a little thicker."
His confidence is building in that regard.
"I feel great as a blocker now," said Gentry. "I felt great about what I was able to do for the team blocking-wise, and I've been more of an in-line blocker. I'm excited to keep getting better at that, too. Watching this year's film and last year's is pretty amazing, and that was where I needed to make the biggest change."
Gentry redshirted as a freshman in 2015 and played on special teams as well as both tight end and wide receiver in 2016, when he didn't make a catch.
With Butt departed for the Denver Broncos, Gentry and Sean McKeon (29 catches, 285 yards, 9.8 per catch and three touchdowns) became the primary tight end passing targets.
Gentry's role grew throughout the season, and he was a major factor in the last three games against Maryland, Wisconsin and Ohio State. He made a catch for at least 27 yards in each of those contests, when he had six grabs for 130 yards and a touchdown. Tailback Chris Evans (eight catches, 82 yards) was the only Wolverine who even approached his yardage total in those games.
What are his goals at this point?
"First of all, I want to win this bowl game," said Gentry, pointing to Monday's (Jan. 1) Outback Bowl matchup with South Carolina. "Obviously, we've got to go out on a high note and carry that momentum during the offseason into spring ball.
"My personal goals are I just want to play as well as I can for Michigan and want to help us win. I hope our team is able to work hard this offseason and get to where we want to be."
