Rogers’ Ziemba picks Auburn
Posted on Wednesday, January 17, 2007
ROGERS - Lee Ziemba's college football career will play out on the plains of Auburn.
A source confirmed to The Daily Record on Tuesday that Ziemba, Rogers' 6-foot-7, 300-pound All-American lineman and top recruit in Arkansas, committed to Tigers head football coach Tommy Tuberville over the weekend while on an official recruiting visit to the university.
Ziemba had narrowed his choices to Auburn and Arkansas and was split 50- 50 between the two schools for much of the football season while the Mounties went 12-1 and advanced to the Class 7 A state championship game.
A press conference is scheduled for 8 a.m. Friday morning in the Rogers High School commons for Ziemba to formally announce his commitment.
Verbal commitments are non-binding. National Signing Day is Feb. 7.
At Auburn, Ziemba will join his friend Kodi Burns, Fort Smith Northside's quarterback who committed to the Tigers back in the fall.
Ziemba, wearing an Auburn baseball cap Tuesday at the Rogers basketball game at W. E. King Arena, also was recruited heavily by Arkansas and then-offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn.
Malzahn announced Monday that he was leaving the Razorbacks to take the co-offensive coordinator / assistant head coach position at Tulsa.
According to sources, Ziemba's mind was made up on Auburn before Malzahn announced his decision. Tuberville is expected to make an in-house visit here today.
Ziemba garnered numerous awards in his senior season at Rogers, including the Gatorade Player of the Year for Arkansas and the 7 A-West's Outstanding Lineman. He also was a first-team All-American for USA Today and a member for the Associated Press Super Team.
Ziemba led Rogers with 126 total blocks from the left tackle position, including 33 champion blocks, 19 deuce blocks, 31 pancake blocks and 43 knockdowns. Ziemba also 11 total tackles and 1. 5 sacks while playing in goalline situations on defense.
In other recruiting news, Rogers senior defensive end Derek Smith committed to the University of Central Arkansas on Sunday on an official recruiting visit.
Smith, The Benton County Daily Record's Defensive Player of the Year, recorded a state-record 19 sacks for the Mounties in 2006, including six sacks in one game against Bentonville. The 6-3, 220-pound defensive end was offered a scholarship by UCA shortly after the season ended.
"I like the coaches," Smith said. "Coach [Clint ] Conque really made it an easy decision. I really like the campus. I think they have a good football program."
Smith said the coaches told him he'll have a chance to earn the starting deepsnapper's job, a position he held at Rogers as well. He'll also begin his career at UCA as a defensive end instead of a linebacker, as previously speculated.
Also, Rogers wide receiver Chad Peachey, who caught a school record 78 passes for 1, 191 yards, has accepted an academic scholarship to Missouri State and plans to walk on to the Bears' football team.
At MSU, Peachey will be a teammate of Rogers quarterback Cody Kirby, who committed to Missouri State in December. The two plan to room together at MSU.
Missouri State and Central Arkansas open the season with each other on Sept. 22 in Springfield, Mo.
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