Legacies only grow over time.
 
And that is certainly the case with the "Z" Team, a collection of 36 football players chosen by Dick Zornes who made the largest contributions toward the 158 games Eastern won in the 26 years he was passionately associated with the football program at Eastern. Zornes was a player (1963-66), assistant coach (1967, 1971) and head coach (1979-93), before spending his final five years in the athletic department as an administrator (1994-99). He had two tenures as the school's athletic director (1990-93) and (1997-99).
 
Of the first 90 seasons of football at Eastern, Zornes had a hand in 26 of them as he watched the transformations from Eastern Washington State College to Eastern Washington University; from Savages to Eagles; from NAIA to NCAA Division I and the Championship Football Subdivision (FCS, formerly known as I-AA); and from zero wins to national prominence. The 112th season in history, however, has been postponed because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
 
When Zornes retired from the Eastern athletic department in 1999, without hesitation when asked he took pencil to pen and mapped out his all-time team. The Eagles were 158-112-3 for a winning percentage of 58.4 percent in that span of 273 games in 26 seasons, including an 89-66-2 record in his 15 seasons as head coach.
 
Of the 36 players on the "Z" Team, nine were members of his 1985 squad which beat Idaho 42-38 in the FCS Playoffs. Six players were members of the 1967 team, six played for him in 1992 and four were a part of the 1997 squad coached by Mike Kramer. Most importantly, 10 were his fellow teammates on Eastern teams from 1963-66.
 
Of those 36 players, 17 have gone on to become members of the Eastern Athletics Hall of Fame. Zornes himself is a member, and the 1967, 1985, 1992 and 1997 teams have all been inducted as well. Holmes was an inaugural member of the HOF in 1996, and the 1967 squad was the first team to be inducted in 2001.
 
Zornes began his playing career at Eastern in 1963 after graduating from Hudson's Bay High School in Vancouver, Wash., in 1962. The Savages were winless in 1962, but by 1967 Eastern was playing for a national championship. A student assistant coach on that 1997 squad, Zornes helped the Savages and head coach Dave Holmes win 11-straight games before falling to Fairmont State in the NAIA Championship game.
 
Zornes would return to Eastern in 1971 as a graduate assistant coach, then again in 1979 as head coach when Eastern began its rise to NCAA Division I and the Big Sky Conference. Under Zornes, the Eagles won their first-ever Big Sky football title in 1992, and also secured their first two berths in the FCS Playoffs.
 
As an administrator, Eastern teams won 30 more games in five seasons, with a Big Sky Championship and "Final Four" appearance in the playoffs in 1997. Entering the 2020-21 school year, Eastern has now had 10 titles and 13 playoff appearances as a national football power.
 
"As a player, Dick was a fierce competitor and a team leader," said Holmes (now deceased) back in the early 1990's. "Dick's coaching was marked by outstanding teach of skills; he never gave up the quest for perfection. His recruiting efforts were characterized by accurate assessments of ability, character, work ethic and growth potentiation, and always with a truthful representation of our program and academic offerings of the university. EWU will always remember his contributions."
 
"I see and understand the positive influence that athletic competition has on young people every day," said in 1999 by John Johnson, one of Zornes' players at Eastern who became a long-time athletics administrator in the region (now at Nebraska after a tenure at Washington State University). "Athletics teach lessons to student-athletes that carry over later in life. I know the influence that coach Zornes had on me. He taught that discipline and hard work will help you be successful, not matter what career path you take. He had the unique ability and enthusiasm to instill this in his players, which equated to a lot of wins on the football field and a successful football program."
 
 

The "Z" Team . . . Dick Zornes All-Time Football Team (selected in the summer of 1999)

 
Below is his list of 36 players who made the largest contributions toward the 158 games Eastern won in the 26 years he was associated with the football program at Eastern. He spent a total of 15 seasons as head coach at EWU from 1979-93.
 
Player: 1963-66 (4) – Record of 23-12/14-10-1 Evergreen Conference
Assistant Coach: 1967, 1971 (2) – Record of 16-6/9-3 Evergreen Conference – title in 1967; NAIA Runner-Up in 1967
Head Coach: 1979-93 (15) – Record of 89-66/26-28 Big Sky Conference – title in 1992; FCS Playoffs in 1992
Administrator: 1994-98 (5) – Record of 30-28/18-20 Big Sky Conference – title in 1997; FCS Playoffs in 1997
Total Years Associated With Program: 26 – Record of 158-112/67-61-1 in league play – 3 titles, 3 playoff berths
 
 
#Member of Eastern Athletics Hall of Fame (Wall received the Service & Contribution Award)
 

Offense	Player	Hometown (Previous School)	Years Lettered	Honors/Stats/Notes
Left Tackle	#Kevin Sargent	Bremerton, Wash. (Bremerton HS)	1988-89-90-91	Earned All-America honors in '90 & '91; Played seven seasons in the NFL
Left Guard	#Mick Landmark	Kamiah, Idaho (Kamiah HS)	1964-65-66	All-America in 1966; Two-time All-Evergreen Conference
Center	#Greg Gavin	Tonasket, Wash. (Tonasket HS)	1966-67-68-69	All-America in '68 & '69; Three-time All-Evergreen Conference pick
	Kevin Peterson	Port Orchard, Wash. (South Kitsap HS)	1994-95-96-97	Started 43-straight games; All-America in 1997
Right Guard	Harold Fox	Vancouver, Wash. (Evergreen HS)	1991-92-93-94	All-America in '94; First Team All-Big Sky Conference Three Seasons
	Barry Randall	Dorothy, Alberta	1965-66	1st Team All-EvCo in 1966; Went on to 11-year career in CFL with Montreal
Right Tackle	#Ed Simmons	Seattle, Wash. (Nathan Hale HS)	1983-84-85-86	All-America in 1986; Veteran of 11 NFL seasons from 1987-97
Tight End	Eric Riley	North Bend, Wash. (Mount Si HS)	1983-84-85-86	TD every 6.7 catches; 74 career catches for 1,002 yards, 11 TD
	#Scott Garske	Spokane, Wash. (North Central HS)	1971-72-73	All-America in 1973; Had 106 career catches for 1,477 yards
Flanker	#Bob Picard	Omak, Wash. (Omak HS)	1968-69-71-72	All-America in 1972; Held EWU record with 166 career catches for 21 years
Split End	#Dave Svendsen	Sumner, Wash. (Sumner HS)	1966-67-68	All-America in '67 & '68; 147 catches for 2,238 yards, 26 TD
Wide Receiver	#Jeff Ogden	Snohomish, Wash. (Snohomish HS)	1995-96-97	From walk-on to All-America in 1997; Played five seasons in the NFL
	#Tony Brooks	Tacoma, Wash. (Mount Tahoma HS)	1990-91-92-93	All-America in 1993; 167 catches for 3,013 yards, 26 TD
Fullback	Don Strate	Davenport, Wash. (Davenport HS)	1964-65-66	Rushed for 1,972 career yards; All-Evergreen Conference in 1964
	Joe Kniffen	Sumner, Wash. (Sumner HS)	1982-83-84-85	Had 1,172 rushing yards and 34 catches in his career
Running Back	#Mel Stanton	Spokane, Wash. (Lewis & Clark HS)	1963-64-65	All-America in '65 with 1,238 yards and 21 TD; 2,318 in career
	Jamie Townsend	Pasco, Wash. (Pasco HS)	1984-85-86-88	All-America in 1985; 2,970 career yards with 27 TD
Quarterback	#Rick Worman	Saratoga, Calif. (Saratoga HS & Fresno St.)	1984-85	All-America in 1985; 5,588 yards, 45 TD in two seasons; Played in the CFL
	#Bill Diedrick Jr.	Spokane, Wash. (North Central HS)	1965-66-67-69	All-America in 1967; 4,076 career yards and 50 TD
Defense	Player	Hometown (Previous School)	Years Lettered	Honors/Stats/Notes
Left End	Dan Moriarty	Seattle, Wash. (O'Dea HS)	1983-84-85-86	Impressive 15 passes broken up, 96 tackles, nine sacks in career
	Vern Garland	Concrete, Wash. (Concrete HS)	1964-65-66-67	All-EvCo in 1967 when opponents held to 93.5 rushing yards per game
Left Tackle	Craig Steinmetzer	Maple Valley, Wash. (Tahoma HS)	1991-92-93-94	All-America in 1994; 14 sacks and 93 total tackles in his career
Right Tackle	#Chris Scott	Wenatchee, Wash. (Wenatchee HS)	1994-95-96-97	All-America and BSC Defensive MVP in 1997; 25 1/2 sacks, 236 tackles
	Paul Horak	Odessa, Wash. (Odessa HS)	1965-66-67-68	All-America in 1968; All-Evergreen Conference three times
Right End	Tommy Williams	Chicago, Ill. (Moraine Val. CC)	1991-92	All-America in 1992 with 12 1/2 sacks and 51 tackles; 19 career sacks
Outside LB	Bill Altena	Yakima, Wash. (West Valley HS)	1983-84-85-86	Former EWU record-holder with 231 career tackles
Middle LB	Derek Strey	Port Orchard, Wash. (South Kitsap HS)	1993-95-96-97	All-America in '96 & '97; 346 career tackles
	#Bill "Bink" Wall	Tekoa, Wash. (Tekoa HS)	1965-66-67	Won All-Evergreen Conference and Little All-Northwest honors in 1967
Outside LB	Joe Peterson	Kirkland, Wash. (Juanita HS)	1989-90-91-92	First team All-Big Sky in '92 with 113 tackles, two interceptions, two sacks
Left CB	#Rob Friese	Lebam, Wash. (Willapa Valley HS)	1982-83-84-85	Finished career with 169 tackles, nine int., 16 passes broken up
Right CB	#Jackie Kellogg	Tacoma, Wash. (Clover Park HS)	1990-91-92-93	All-BSC 1st team twice as CB; Started 43 of 43; 222 tackles, 17 int., 41 pbu
Strong Safety	Greg Kramer	Snohomish, Wash. (Snohomish HS & CBC)	1981-82	School-record nine interceptions with 46 tackles in 1982
	Mark Puyear	Granger, Wash. (Granger HS)	1980-81-82-83	Had 12 interceptions in his career
Free Safety	#Kurt Schulz	Yakima, Wash. (Eisenhower HS)	1988-89-90-91	All-America in '89 & '91; 17 int., 224 tackles, 28 pbu; Played 10 years in NFL
Specialists	Player	Hometown (Previous School)	Years Lettered	Honors/Stats/Notes
Kicker	Eric Stein	Yakima, Wash. (West Valley HS)	1984-85-86-87	Had 28 career field goals, including six of 51 yards or more
Punter	Eric Stein	Yakima, Wash. (West Valley HS)	1984-85-86-87	All-America in 1987 with 43.1 average; 41.3 average in career
Kickoff Ret.	Craig Richardson	Seattle, Wash. (O'Dea HS)	1983-84-85-86	Led FCS with 34.7 average in 1984; 27.2 average in career
Punt Returner	#Rob Friese	Lebam, Wash. (Willapa Valley HS)	1982-83-84-85	Averaged 12.1 yards per return in career with two TD