Westlake Village (Calif.) Oaks Christian 2014 receiver Zack Bornstein isn’t just a football prospect to watch, he’s also one of the elite decathletes in his age group nationally.
Ranked among the top 10 decathletes in the class of 2014, Bornstein, who’s 6-4, 210, wants to play football in college, but also fully intends to pursue a track career at the next level.
One school has caught his eye, a school known for their track program while also being successful on the gridiron.
“At this stage, Oregon has really caught my eye,” said Bornstein. “I like them a lot for football, but they have a really good track program too.”
In February, the Ducks signed Oshay Dunmore, who’s also a top-tier decathlete while playing football.
And Bornstein is hopeful he can do both at the next level.
“I definitely want to do track in college,” said Bornstein. “I don’t know what sport will take me farther. It could be football, but as a decathlete, I’d like to pursue that for as long as possible.”
Aside from the Ducks, Bornstein is also interested in a number of other schools.
“I like mostly Pac-12 schools, like Stanford, UCLA, Cal and Washington,” said Bornstein.
While he’s 6-4, 210, as he wraps up his sophomore year, Bornstein said he envisions himself growing out of the receiver position.
“I would think I’d grow into a tight end, because I think I could be up to 6-5, 240,” said Bornstein.
Bornstein said much of what he does in the decathlon has carryover to football.
“It really helps in doing the high jump, the long jump and hurdling, because those athletic moves contribute to football,” said Bornstein. “When I was younger, I did distances, and then I got bored with it, so then I started doing multis, and went from triathlon’s to pentathlon’s then when I turned 15, I could do the decathlon. I’m not great in one event, but good in all 10. And it’s helped me with football.”
With the Lions losing several offensive weapons to graduation, Bornstein figures to be a bigger part of the passing game this fall, lining up mainly as a receiver.
Academically, he has a 3.6 GPA and will wait until his junior year to take the SAT.