Las Vegan Zach Collins holds his ground at Gonzaga

SAN JOSE, Calif.

J.T. Barrett is a senior quarterback for Ohio State who will be the first three-time captain in program history, and after one recent spring football practice, reporters asked him about a certain heralded freshman at the same position.

“I wish you could ask him how his first two days went,” Barrett said. “You come from high school, where you’re a big fish in a big pond. Now, you’re a guppy in a big pond.

“It’s not Bishop Gorman, that’s for sure.”

The sports might differ, but what Tate Martell is experiencing as the former Gaels star acclimates himself to one of the nation’s most successful programs, Zach Collins knows of such adjustment as a basketball player in a town along the Spokane River west of the Rocky Mountain foothills in eastern Washington.

He, too, made a national name for himself at Bishop Gorman, but while Martell did so as an undersized standout throwing and running for touchdowns, Collins created his resume as a 7-footer blocking shots and rattling rims with dunks.

Gonzaga as a No. 1 seed in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament engages West Virginia in a Sweet 16 game Thursday at SAP Center, and it seems a lifetime ago for Collins when he arrived at school to the daily challenges of teammates.

“I knew that I had to adjust to the speed and physicality of things, and they definitely made me earn my spot,” Collins said. “I was the new guy on campus and was a little worried because there were a lot of guys who were coming back and had been through a lot together. I wasn’t sure how they would treat me.

“They pushed me on the court. They were in my ear. But once they saw I could take it and played even harder when they got on me, everything was fine. I couldn’t have asked for a better transition.”

He was recruited to start as a freshman, because no one at the time could have predicted the giant that is senior Przemek Karnowski (7-1, 304 pounds) would be granted a medical redshirt from the NCAA because of a back injury and return for a fifth year.

But as much as anything else, Gonzaga being 34-1 and one of the better defensive sides you will see has to do with featuring two 7-foot centers of varying yet equally significant skills to test opponents at both ends. You can count on one hand the number of programs nationally that have such a luxury.

“Maybe 99 percent of them don’t,” Zags coach Mark Few said.

The maturation of Collins on the court — he’s averaging 10.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.6 blocks while shooting a ridiculously good 65 percent in 17.3 minutes — also can be traced to a hotel room in Orlando, Florida.

Gonzaga’s first trip of the season was to the AdvoCare Invitational in November, and coaches had Collins room with junior point guard Nigel Williams-Goss, a Findlay Prep product who began his college career at Washington before transferring.

The Zags won the event and, not wanting to mess with fate, the two former Las Vegas area prep stars asked that they remain road trip roomies.

Which, when you consider Gonzaga won its first 29 games before losing, was a fairly astute request.

“Zach has never backed down,” Williams-Goss said. “We bullied him a little at first, pushed his buttons to see how he would react, and he just played through it. He was a sponge, constantly asking questions. When someone with his athleticism and ability is like that, you know he’s going to be a big-time player.”

Nothing says friendship like a little personal rivalry, and Williams-Goss doesn’t hesitate to remind Collins that, under his guidance, Findlay Prep went 4-0 against Bishop Gorman. Collins counters that he went 2-1 against the Pilots and never played against Findlay Prep when his Zags teammate was part of the equation.

Williams-Goss then reminds Collins this is the case because the center was on junior varsity his first year of high school.

Collins then doesn’t say much.

“That one still hurts,” Collins said. “I really don’t have a comeback for it.

“I didn’t know Nigel back (in Las Vegas). It’s not like I was best friends with a lot of Findlay guys … But rooming together this season helped a lot. We talked all season about basketball, about life, about helping each other on and off the court. It brought us a lot closer. Now, it’s just about trying to continue advancing in this tournament. All that matters is winning the next game. I knew the college level wouldn’t be easy, but I wouldn’t trade this for anything.”

As adjustments go, he’s no guppy.

Contact columnist Ed Graney at egraney@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4618. He can be heard on “Seat and Ed” on Fox Sports 1340 from 2 to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Follow @edgraney on Twitter.