Colorado State center Weston Richburg had been a quarterback in high school before a growth spurt. Credit: Rich Abrahamson/The Coloradoan

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Green Bay — Each visit to the doctor led to tears. A torn ACL eliminated his sophomore and junior years of football in high school. At Bushland (Texas) High School, Weston Richburg went from quarterback to waterboy with one freak injury.

He didn't know it at the time. But this torn ACL would be the key to an NFL future.

"I wouldn't have traded that situation for the world," Richburg said. "I believe that if I hadn't torn my ACL, I wouldn't be in this situation today."

In those two years away from football, Richburg grew from a 5-foot-9, 180-pound quarterback to a 6-foot-3, 240-pound lineman. Now he might be the best center in the NFL draft. Away from football, he bulked up. Weights. Genes. By the time he put the pads back on, Richburg was line-bound. After starting 50 straight games at Colorado State, Richburg will be a first- or second-round option for the Green Bay Packers if they decide to go with a center early.

Trust in JC Tretter remains one pre-draft mystery. Will the Packers roll with Tretter and/or another in-house candidate competing? Or is a new face necessary?

Richburg could be the most pro-ready rookie.

"I'm a real physical player," Richburg said. "I like to get after guys and get physical in the interior. That's what the position is all about. I'm athletic. I enjoy pulling and getting outside on screens. I'm able to get out and match up on those smaller, quicker guys better than some guys. And I think I'm a really cerebral player as well. I was in charge of a lot of our calls.

"The combination of all those things makes me unique from all the other centers in the draft right now."

Richburg originally tore his ACL making a tackle at linebacker that sophomore year at Bushland. The problem was that he couldn't have surgery immediately. His growth plates hadn't closed yet. His dad is 6 foot 6. His grandfather was 6 foot 3. His uncle was 6 foot 6.

Richburg was in the middle of a major growth spurt. So doctor after doctor advised him to wait for surgery. Richburg finally had surgery after a full year and then needed a six-month recovery.

Taking up shot put and discus in track helped him stay sane. But he couldn't play football, couldn't play basketball. On the field, Richburg was a "glorified waterboy."

"That was it," he said. "That's how guys saw me — a guy who was giving them water bottles. It kind of sucked."

He returned, finally, as a senior and did just enough for Colorado State to notice. Richburg liked the fact that they had a strong agriculture program, too. He grew up a farm.

Colorado State it was. He started immediately. He never looked back.

The 50 starts were a Colorado State record. Last season was the offense's most prolific in school history, averaging 470.8 yards per game with 507 points. The injury and the upbringing, Richburg says, made him appreciate the grind.

His family raised cows, pigs and farmed on a plot of land. From third grade to his senior year of high school, Richburg showed pigs and cows. And on that farm, he'd wake up at 6 a.m. to feed animals before school. After school, he'd come home, feed the animals, clean their tins, etc.

He couldn't relax much on weekends, either. Dad would give him an extra hour — maybe — to sleep before waking him up to work.

"It was quite the learning experience, taught me a lot of discipline," Richburg said. "It taught me to work hard because if you're not going to work hard in agriculture, you're not going to get any good results."

Richburg did grit through injuries during the 50-game streak. As a sophomore, he broke his snapping hand, clubbed it, moved to tackle for two games and finished that season snapping with his left hand for one game at center. "Terrified" at the time, Richburg was shocked with how well that game went.

He started from Day 1 in college and wants to do the same in the pros.

"I'm a physical player and I have an attitude where I'm going to get after guys," he said. "Early on in my career, it may not have been pretty, but I was getting after somebody and being physical."

The Packers will want a center capable of pressing the tempo. For two years, they've been trying to speed up their no-huddle offense. Richburg made his team's pass protection and run calls at the line.

In his interviews with NFL teams, his intelligence is tested. Some teams, Richburg said, put up film of their plays with their calls. He'd need to memorize it — quickly — and then recite responsibilities later in the meeting.

Still, even he admits the speed of the game will be a major adjustment.

"You have to be able to think a lot faster," he said, "because the talent's a lot better."

The meeting with Green Bay went well. He thinks the Packers would be "a great fit." The offense, for one. Richburg sees himself in a small town, too. He also knows David Bakhtiari from their in-state rivalry.

Whether it's Tretter or a rookie, Aaron Rodgers could use a long-term center. This will be his fourth different center in four years. Green Bay needs stability.

Richburg has a wrecked knee to thank for even being in the discussion.

He doesn't miss quarterback.

"No. Not at all," he said. "I love playing offensive line."