The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
HUGE FAMILY IS BEHIND ISABELLA
Mayfield graduate is finalist Biletnikoff Award, which goes to top receiver from FBS school
For as long as his father can remember, football has always been a huge part of Andy Isabella’s life.
Another huge part of his life is family — literally. The Mayfield graduate and finalist for the Biletnikoff Award is one of seven children to Tony and Susan Isabella. It’s the start of a huge family — aunts, uncles, in-laws, you name it.
“We had about 35 for Thanksgiving,” said Tony. “The family is huge on both sides. The holidays are always great.”
Dec. 6 could be even greater for the Isabella family. There will be plenty rooting on and watching ESPN.
Andy, a senior wide receiver at UMass, is a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award, given to the nation’s top FBS receiver. The winner will be announced in Atlanta during The Home Depot College Football Awards show, which will be held at the College Football Hall
What to look for: Mayfield graduate Andy Isabella of UMass is one of three finalists for the Biletnikoff Award . ... Twelve awards will be handed out, including, among others, the Outland and Maxwell Awards.
of Fame.
Joining Andy as finalists are Alabama’s Jerry Jeudy and Oklahoma State’s Tylan Wallace. Jeudy and Wallace have the advantage of playing at marquee football schools. Isabella does not.
It’s been a Cinderella story of sorts just to be one of three Biletnikoff finalists, and goes way back to the days when Andy’s father encouraged his children to dream big and work hard.
“He’s living out a dream since he was a child,” said Tony. “It starting to seem real now.”
“Everyone is so pumped. I think it would be amazing if Andy won it. It would show that hard work pays off, and that’s what our school is all about here — hard work.” — Joey Isabella, Andy’s brother
It began when Andy was a toddler — “When he was about 4 or 5,” said his father. Andy would go to bed each night with a football. He would build football stadiums with Legos. When he could read and write, Andy would design football plays on sheets of paper. The stack of sheets and plays kept growing, so Tony made a binder.
“Andy had a passion for football,” said his father.
By the time he was 12, Andy was also a very good soccer player. Tony remembers a soccer coach encouraging him to keep playing the game.
“He said, ‘I’m going to be a football player,’ ” said Tony.
What a player he’s become. A record-setting season in 2018 has produced video game-like numbers. His 102 receptions and 1,698 yards rank first in the country
and his 13 touchdowns are tied for fourth. On stats alone, Isabella should be a runaway winner but nothing is guaranteed.
Back home, Andy’s brothers and sisters will gather with other family members to watch the awards show. Leading the cheers will be older brother Nick, a student at Cleveland State, younger brother Joey, who’s a junior at Mayfield High School, and sisters Anna, Lauren, Mary and Emily.
This past fall, Joey, a receiver for the Wildcats, caught 13 touchdowns, and hopes to follow his brother as a college football player. Because Joey is a member of the Mayfield football program, there’s no shortage of excitement among the team and at the high school for the Dec. 6 Biletnikoff announcement.
“Everyone is so pumped. I think it would be amazing if Andy won it,” said Joey. “It would show that hard work pays off, and that’s what our school is all about here — hard work.”
Andy’s parents will be in Atlanta and in attendance at the awards show.
If he wins the award, it will be notable. Since the creation of the Biletnikoff in 1994, only three players from non-Power 5 conference teams have won it — Wyoming’s Marcus Harris (1996), Marshall’s Randy Moss (1997) and Louisiana Tech’s Troy Edwards (1998).
Other than that, it’s been the likes of Pitt’s Antonio Bryant and Larry Fitzgerald, Georgia Tech’s Calvin Johnson, Texas Tech’s Michael Crabtree, and Alabama’s Amari Cooper as winners.
It’s because of those names and the fact he plays at school not known for football that has Andy pinching himself.
“(I thought there) was no way,” said Isabella to The News-Herald upon learning he was a finalist for the award. “I had to check two or three times before I was like, ‘OK, yeah this is real.’ ”
Win or lose, Mayfield football coach Ross Bandiera
said Andy as a finalist and his rise as an All-America-type player is huge for the program.
“It definitely helps put us on the map, and hopefully it helps getting some of our guys get recruited,” said Bandiera, who’s pushing to get his star linebacker, senior Ty Tiggs, a Division I look.
Joey, who like his older brother relies on quickness and blazing speed, might get more looks from colleges during his senior year because Andy helped make the Isabella name notable on the college football landscape.
That can wait. On Dec. 6, a big award will be handed out. Four years ago, Andy was a player with just one FBS offer, but he took that offer and molded himself into one of the nation’s best. The big payoff might be waiting in the form of a huge honor. Everyone in the Isabella family will be watching.
“It’s awesome,” said Joey. “We can’t wait to watch.”