Last season David Rach played in all 11 games for Youngstown State.  Not only was he a valuable component of a fast-maturing defense, but he participated in 155 snaps of special teams, second most on the team.  Rach is the typical small town success story as he prospered at North Lima South Range High School making First Team All-Ohio as a Senior under Coach Dan Yeagley. Rach seems very focused on the task at hand, the 2010 football season and disclosed some interesting viewpoints on many subjects.

Paneech: Playing in a smaller conference in high school at South Range, what obstacles did you have to overcome to mingle with all of these big program guys around you?

Rach: I feel like I was just as well prepared as anyone.  Some of the bigger schools have more numbers to choose from and maybe flashier players.  I think there is a lot of talent in the ITCL, especially since they restructured it to make things more competitive. Northeastern Ohio has a solid reputation for churning out good football players.  Coach Yeagley and his staff have a great record at South Range over the past 15 to 20 years and everyone who played there from pee wee up to varsity took great pride in representing the community and the school in such a positive fashion.

Paneech: Have you had any nightmares about tackling Evan Royster when you take the field against Penn State Saturday?

Rach: We have watched him on film, and obviously, he is an outstanding back.  The good thing is that we played Pitt last year and Ohio State the year before and they both had good backs, not taking anything away from him [Royster], because he is as good as anyone we will play against.  Playing any team, you have to line up and make tackles.  I watched Coach [Eric] Wolford’s press conference and he commented that there can be very little margin of error.  You almost have to play perfect.

Paneech: How do you feel about going to a real big stadium and facing a coaching legend in Joe Paterno?

Rach: We are playing 1-AA football here and I don’t care who you talk to, everyone here thinks they are a Division-I guy.  This is our chance to go out there and really show what we can do against a team that the entire country respects on a big stage like the Big-10 Network, it’s really exciting . Whatever we do Saturday holds a lot of merit around the country.  It’s very humbling, not taking anything away from our coaches, to look over there and see Joe Paterno. When you are a kid, you dream of playing for someone like that someday.  I now have the privilege to play against him.  The good news is that you know what you are going to get with him, they have been doing the same things for 50 years.  They are good at what they do, the record speaks for itself.  Obviously, it’s very humbling to be playing against a legend like Coach Paterno.

Paneech: You do well academically, what is it you wish to do when your studies are completed here at YSU?

Rach: I’m an Integrated Science Major in Education and I am also going to get my minor in Mathematics.  I take pride in my education like everyone else out here.  I know that football is going to end someday and that I will have to move on to something else in life, preferably teaching and coaching.

Paneech: How tough is the adjustment of going from having nothing to do a month-and-a-half ago to now having class, practice, and game preparations?

Rach: I got a week off this Summer to go to Myrtle Beach with my family.  We really haven’t had much of a break since the new coaching staff got here, we have been grinding.  Last year we were 6-5 and two years ago we were 4-8 and we realized that things needed to change.  Being picked to finish seventh in the conference is something we earned from the way we played the last couple of years.  It drives us and there is nobody here who thinks we are a seventh place team and we have to play hard week in and week out to prove that.

Paneech: Explain the differences between the Heacock and Wolford styles.

Rach: I don’t have a bad thing to say about anybody on either staff.  I think the biggest difference now is that the intensity has really picked up.  There are a lot of new faces, it took the first couple of weeks just to learn everybody’s names.  It’s a fresh start and a change that I hope transpires over to the field.

Paneech: What NFL linebacker do you admire the most?

Rach: Well, I am a Cleveland Browns fan, but my favorite NFL Linebacker is Brian Urlacher. He is relied upon to do everything and is kind of undersized.  He plays the game the right way and is a class act.

One Word Answers

Favorite Cereal: Lucky Charms.

Favorite Movie: Wedding Crashers.

Biggest Phobia: Snakes.

Best Class At YSU: Turning Points in US History II.

Toppings On a Pizza: Pizza Hut Meat Lover.

Worst Habit: Swearing.  When I get mad, I get a little mouthy.

Favorite Drink: Water with a lemon slice.

Favorite TV Show: Deadliest Catch.

Vegas or Cancun: Vegas.

Biggest Wish In Life: To coach college football somewhere down the road.

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