Athlete of the Week: Collin Isaac, Tippecanoe

After all, he looks at himself as a player straight out of the ’90s, wanting to stylize his play to the likes of Bosworth and Ray Lewis.

Isaac is a senior linebacker for Tippecanoe football. In their Nov. 14 home playoff game against Hamilton Badin, a 23-16 win, he made 16 tackles, nine of which were solo, and had one tackle for loss. He also made the game-clinching interception on a fourth down play with under two minutes remaining.

For his efforts, Isaac was named the Dayton Daily News Athlete of the Week for Nov. 10 through Nov. 16, earning the honor through reader voting at DaytonDailyNews.com.

“I was extremely excited knowing I got nominated for it,” he said of his nomination. “I came home and my mom was all over it and texted me all about it all day. I got a warm welcome from the family about it and they’ve been posting all over social media.”

Credit: Steven Wright

Credit: Steven Wright

Isaac’s physical play and awareness for the ball at all times has made him a ferocious player on the field. He was named the All-Southwest District Division III Defensive Player of the Year this season.

His performance against Badin was the seventh double-digit tackle game of the season for Isaac. He led the Miami Valley League a year ago and ranked second this season heading into Friday’s regional final game against London.

“[Coach] Burgbacher telling me this year that I was pretty much the defensive team leader and I would be the quarterback of the defense was just really cool and heartwarming,” Isaac said. “I put a lot of time and effort into all this and I’m always talking up all the fellas and making sure everybody’s on the same page.”

Isaac also got to score the first two touchdowns of his high school career earlier this season. Switching from H-back to running back on offense, he ran in a 20-yard score against Bellbrook in Week 1, and did so again from four yards out against Greenville in Week 8.

He joked he could get a leg up on the competition while running the ball from being a linebacker himself and knowing how to get by others. But he doesn’t feel like could give his team’s starter, senior Xavier Melton, any tips he doesn’t already know.

Isaac said one of his favorite memories playing football is a loss, the team’s defeat by St. Mary’s Memorial in the 2024 playoffs. He and his teammates have used it as motivation all season while going through the regular season undefeated. Even if he’s helping with tasks such as meal preps of taco bowls for his family during the week, he said he thinks about that game almost daily.

“Going out the way we did was just heartbreaking,” Isaac said. “Being able to surpass what we did last year and now beat Badin, who has ended our season before, is just an amazing run.”

Send us your nominations

Where to find our coverage

Want to find the latest news on your smartphone? Download the new and improved Dayton Daily News app from your app store.