Oakland Raiders Sign Waterford's Zach Hurd

After a couple of false starts, 23-year-old Waterford native has found a home in the NFL with the Oakland Raiders. The Raiders signed the 6-foot-7, 316-pound offensive lineman to the team’s practice squad on October 19 to replace Matt Shaughnessy, who is on injured reserve.

Hurd didn’t start playing football until high school but by his senior year at Waterford High, he was team captain and playing in the Connecticut-Rhode Island Governors’ Cup All-Star Game. At the University of Connecticut, he proved to be the Huskies most consistent blocker.

In his last three years at UConn, he started all 39 games and set a school record by appearing in 52 games during the course of his college football career. In 2010, and was named first-team All-Big East by league coaches.

Despite his record of success on the field, his move to the NFL got off to a shaky start. Hurd was a combine invite in February and said he felt he did well in his interviews with teams, but he was passed over in the seventh-round draft picks in May.

Now he’s finally got his shot at the big time, however, the Raiders might just become Waterford’s home team!