Zachary battled stomach issues during Liberty football summer workouts prior to the 2014 season. Originally diagnosed with an infection, Zachary knew it was more when his symptoms escalated and the linebacker lost nearly 40 pounds over six weeks.
He returned home to Maryland and secured an appointment at Johns Hopkins where ultimately Zachary was diagnosed with the rare disease Ulcerative Colitis (UC). The shock of his diagnosis was compounded when doctors told him he had the more severe type of UC, so his treatment protocol was going to take some time, and not being able to play football ever again was a real possibility. Returning to the field drove Zachary, though.
His monthly treatments and flare-ups, where some mornings it was difficult to get out of bed and it wasn’t uncommon to lose up to 10 pounds in a week, did not prevent Schreiber from getting back on the field. He played the second half of the 2014 season and finished off his senior season in 2015 by playing in every game.
