Scots senior takes field as fast, powerful runner, team leader
Being a starting running back for Highland Park football — imagine that.
Isaiah Lee used to, when he was little and headed to watch the Scots. He could picture himself in a jersey in front of cheering fans.
“I looked up to those guys,” he said. “The Friday night lights.”
Now it’s reality. He’s an HP football player and a valuable one, as he started in Week 1 to kick off the 2025 season and had a big role in the game plan going forward.
“There certainly is some pressure that comes with that,” he said, “but I’ve been working for this position all four years of high school. I feel like it’s led up to this senior year.”
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Head coach Randy Allen believes the same. He’s long known that the trusty rusher would be a fast component on future teams, and the vision is playing out for both coach and player.
“We could always see the quickness and the strength,” Allen said. “And he’s just continued to develop … He’s a very quick, a very strong running back. Very durable. He’s got a great work ethic, and he’s one of the strongest players for his size on the team and one of the fastest guys on the track team.”
Lee’s varied roles — pass catcher, blocker, ballcarrier — were important as the Scots awaited the return of Matthew White to the running back corps. Lee said he and White, who have played football together since fourth-grade YMCA teams, will be a powerful duo in the backfield.
Lee, with his experience, has been like an extension of the staff on the field and works well with quarterback Buck Randall.
“He knows the plays so well, he can coach other players,” Allen said. “Buck, I think, has a lot of confidence in him because he’s worked so hard to improve his receiving skills. They run the option together, so he’s got to have confidence Isaiah will catch the pitch and all that. So, they have a good relationship.”
Lee relishes the chance to do all he can for the Scots, as he once envisioned when he was a youngster in the stands. The impact of those games on himself and his friends is not forgotten.
“Now that that’s us, that that’s me, it makes me realize I can have a huge impact on the kids, on the community, that there are kids looking up to me as a person and as a leader,” he said.
It’s an impact that goes beyond yards and touchdowns.
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