Bison of the Day

Zac Ross
Position: Wide Receiver
Height: 5-6
Weight: 175
Class: Senior
Hometown: Kansas City, Mo.
Previous School: Muskogee HS/Oklahoma State

Career
Career Games/Starts: 21/13 ... Bison debut: vs. Southwest Baptist (8/30/07) ... First Career Start: vs. Southern Arkansas (10/20/07) ... 38 rushes, 111 yards, 4 TD; 29-of-52 passing, 334 yards, 3 TD; 114 receptions, 1,035 yards, 6 TD; 34 punt returns, 347 yards, 10.2 avg.; 61 kickoff returns, 1,455 yards, 1 TD, 23.9 avg.; 2,948 all-purpose yards; 3 tackles. Harding's career leader in kickoff return yards (1,455) and kickoff returns (61) ... ranks second in receptions per game (5.43) and all-purpose yards per game (140.4) ... ranks fifth in pass receptions (114), sixth in all-purpose yards (2,948) and kickoff return average (23.85), eighth in punt return yards (347) and ninth in punt return average (10.21). Has earned two letters as an all-purpose performer ... has played quarterback, running back, wide receiver, kickoff returner and punt returner. Transferred to Harding from Oklahoma State on Jan. 2, 2007.

Awards
2007
Football Gazette 3rd Team All-Southeast Region (All-Purpose)

2008
Started all 11 games, 10 at wide receiver and one at quarterback ... 30 rushes, 63 yards, 3 TD; 65 receptions, 523 yards, 2 TD; 28-of-50 for 310 yards, 3 TD; 29 kickoff returns, 629 yards, 1 TD; 16 punt returns, 213 yards, 2 tackles. Led Harding with 65 receptions, second-most in an HU single season ... ranked seventh in the GSC and 35th in NCAA II with 5.91 receptions per game ... had five or more receptions in each of the season's first 10 games ... had a season-high eight receptions vs. Southern Arkansas (10/4) ... had seven catches for a season-high 80 yards at North Alabama (9/25). Ranked third in the GSC and 13th in NCAA II with a 13.31-yard punt return average ... it was the sixth-best single-season average by a Bison ... had a season-long 40-yard punt return vs. West Alabama (9/6). Ranked 10th in the GSC and 89th in NCAA II with a 21.69-yard kickoff return average ... had an 86-yard kickoff return for a TD vs. Southern Arkansas (10/4) ... it was only the fifth kickoff return for a TD in school history and the first since 1989, a streak of 786 kickoff returns ... earned GSC Special Teams Player of the Week.
Started at quarterback in Harding's final game of the season against Arkansas Tech (11/8) ... completed 27-of-48 passes for 309 yards and two TD ... also rushed 20 times for 28 yards.
Compiled 1,428 all-purpose yards, eighth in an HU single season ... ranked fifth in the GSC and 33rd in NCAA II with 129.8 all-purpose yards per game.

2007
Played in all 10 games with two starts ... played several offensive positions and returned both kickoffs and punts ... 8 rushes, 48 yards, 1 TD; 1-for-2 passing, 24 yards; 49 receptions, 512 yards, 4 TD; 18 punt returns, 134 yards; 32 kickoff returns, 826 yards. Compiled 1,520 all-purpose yards to rank third in the GSC and 22nd in NCAA II ... it was the fifth-most all-purpose yards in a Harding single season and the fourth-best all-purpose yards per game average (152.0) ... had more than 200 all-purpose yards in two games, including 268 yards at Arkansas-Monticello (9/22), the fifth-highest single-game total in school history. Against West Alabama (9/29), rushed for a nine-yard touchdown, caught a 21-yard touchdown pass, and completed a 24-yard pass. Ranked second on the team with 49 receptions, including a season-high 10 catches for 125 yards against Arkansas Tech (11/3) ... both tied for the most by a Harding receiver in 2007 ... ranked eighth in the GSC in receptions per game (4.90) ... had a season-best two TD receptions vs. Arkansas Tech. Had 32 kickoff returns, the second-highest single-season total by a Harding player ... his 826 kickoff return yards broke the 27-year-old school record of Lafe Caton ... his kickoff return average of 25.81 yards ranked seventh in HU history, was fourth in the GSC and 36th in NCAA II ... set a Harding record with 199 kickoff return yards against Arkansas-Monticello, earning GSC Special Teams Player of the Week honors. Returned 18 punts for 134 yards ... ranked seventh in the GSC and 66th in NCAA II with a 7.4-yard average.

Previous Schools
Redshirted at Oklahoma State in 2005 and was on the active roster in 2006.
Ross lettered in football, basketball and baseball his freshman and sophomore years at Fort Gibson (Okla.) High School ... he then transferred to Muskogee and led the Roughers to the first round of the Class 6A playoffs both his junior and senior seasons ... had 1,500 passing yards, 800 rushing yards and 24 touchdowns as a senior.

Personal
Born: Sept. 9, 1986 in Fayette, Mo. ... Major: Kinesiology ... Parents: David and Alice Ross ... has two brothers (Hayden and Darce) and one sister (Brogan).

Career Highs
Rushes - 20 at Arkansas Tech (11/8/08)
Rushing Yards - 28 at Arkansas Tech (11/8/08)
Rushing TD - 1 (four times), last at Henderson State (11/1/08)
Receptions - 10 vs. Arkansas Tech (11/3/07)
Receiving Yards - 125 vs. Arkansas Tech (11/3/07)
Receiving TD - 2 vs. Arkansas Tech (11/3/07)
Kickoff Returns - 8 at Arkansas-Monticello (9/22/07)
Kickoff Return Yards - 199 at Arkansas-Monticello (9/22/07)
Punt Returns - 4 (twice), last at Southern Arkansas (10/20/07)
Punt Return Yards - 40 vs. West Alabama (9/6/08)