Greenberg's Unique Football Path Led Him to Carolina

Zach Greenberg’s path to North Carolina is quite rare and comes with few comparisons.

A bit undersized at Livingston (NJ) High School, and playing in a program that hadn’t experienced much success, Greenberg was overlooked in the recruiting process.

The big boys didn’t come calling, neither did the mid-sized ones. He did, however, get a chance to play at Muhlenberg College, noted as one of the better Division III programs in the nation. In fact, the Mules have experienced just two losing seasons since the late 1990s, and in Greenberg’s three seasons, they went 27-7.

Greenberg, who is now 6-foot-4 and 290 pounds, says his football path turned out to be best for him.

“My football background is a bit unique,” Greenberg told THI. “When I graduated from high school, I was too undersized, which made it challenging to think beyond Division 3. In hindsight, it was a gift as it led me to start my journey at Muhlenberg College.

“Muhlenberg is a small liberal arts school in Allentown, Pennsylvania, with a powerful football culture, and is well known for its academic standards.”

First of all, Greenberg had to get bigger physically while also growing his game. Muhlenberg was the right place for him to achieve that, as it had all Greenberg needed.

“While at Muhlenberg, I was fortunate to be developed by our head and offensive line coach, Nate Milne,” Greenberg said. “Coach Milne was an instrumental part to my success as he helped fine tune my technique and knowledge of the game.

“Throughout my four years at Muhlenberg, I was not only able to grow as a player but also as a person. Fortunately, I also hit a growth spurt that came with growing three inches and gaining 40 pounds.”

Greenberg, who was also a standout lacrosse player in high school, started 13 games at left tackle as a freshman in 2021, then missed most of the 2022 campaign because of an injury. This past fall, Greenberg was second-team All-Region in helping the Mules to a sixth consecutive final national ranking and postseason victory.

He was first-team All-Centennial Conference twice, all-region three times, all-academic in his conference. But it was time for Greenberg to leave Muhlenberg and D3, so he entered the poral and received plenty of FBS offers, but not much from P5 programs until North Carolina showed interest. This past weekend, Greenberg and his family visited Chapel Hill.

“My family and I were impressed with so many things during my visit to UNC this past weekend,” Greenberg said. “ Right from the start, we were so happy with the welcome we were given from the coaches and the players.

“I am grateful I had the opportunity to spend time with guys on the O line that I know will become a big part of my life for the next couple of years.”

Greenberg has two years of eligibility remaining, and he intends on making the most of it. Although already committed to UNC, he won’t enroll until June. But he has access to the facilities, so can get a better feel for the program before technically enrolling as a graduate transfer in the summer.

And he will do so at a school and program that check so many of his boxes.

“One of the most important things to me, as I began the process of finding my next home, was putting a big emphasis on finding a team with great culture and brotherhood,” he said. “These are just a few of the standout traits UNC football is overflowing with.

“After long conversations with my family, it was clear UNC offered everything needed to be successful both in the classroom and on the field.”

About playing at UNC:

“With regards to my career at UNC, I’m very much looking forward to playing for such a rich tradition and program, made up of a legendary coaching staff and an incredible fan base that I was able to experience at the basketball game.

“We couldn’t believe the vibe that came from the sea of Carolina blue in the stands. It was clear that UNC is a special place that I needed to be a part of.”

On his growth spurt:

“My growth continued at a gradual pace for most of my sophomore and Junior year at Muhlenberg, with the summer heading into my senior year being where I reworked my training program with our strength coach and was able to continue to add good weight.”

On when he started thinking about playing at a higher level:

“I’ve always had the desire to play college football going as far back as when I enrolled in my towns Junior Lancer program. Fortunately, with so many of mine and my friends’ parents being alums at Power 5 football schools, we were lucky to be able to go to a few games when we were young and experience how fantastic it was. The desire to be a part of that experience started back then.”

Where did the confidence come from that he could play in a P5 like the ACC:

“With regards to confidence building, as time went on at Muhlenberg, I became more aware of how strong the competition was. Several of our opponents were either being looked at by NFL scouts or making it to a NFL roster as one of the D ends did, who is now part of the Seahawk organization. Being able to be impactful and limit their outcome on the game, helped give me the confidence that the harder I worked the further I could go with the sport.

“I spent long hours watching the film of my games against these guys and felt that if I continued to push myself and train harder, I could and would make the push to D1 a reality. I also took advantage of a couple fantastic training facilities near my home during the summers. I spent time working with awesome trainers at places named Pro Edge one year and TEST the following, which helped my growth and confidence immensely.

“Knowing that I had two years of eligibility left after graduation and had put together the kind of film I hoped, it was time to test the waters. With the opportunities that came from this, UNC always was a top choice.”

On if he will still play tackle at UNC:

“In terms of the plan at UNC, I will be moving inside to compete for a guard position.”