‘I wasn’t going to quit on myself’: Isheem Young’s second chance in football, life starts at Ole Miss

Isheem Young was fired up. He gave his Imhotep Charter teammates an impassioned motivational speech, telling them to get the “dub” and how proud he was of them on a chilly December 2017 afternoon before the Panthers’ PIAA Class 4A state championship football game against Erie’s Cathedral Prep at Hersheypark Stadium.

A few minutes later, the reality of his situation returned.

Wearing an orange jumper, Young was told to pull back from the speakerphone he just addressed his teammates on and was escorted to his Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility cell. The teenaged Young heard the metallic, visceral sound of the prison doors clasping shut. Any chance he had for a future in football would be closed within those prison walls.

“That was it, that was my rock bottom, after talking to my team, I went back and cried in my cell,” Young said. “I thought that was it. I was through; that I would never play football again. What I can remember, because there was so much going on, was I couldn’t even think straight. There was so much going through my mind when I was in prison. I couldn’t see a future. When those prison doors slam, it hits you. I was supposed to be in Hershey with my team playing for a state championship. Instead, I was lying in a prison cell.

“I believe in second chances.”

He’s currently receiving one as the 5-foot-10, 215-pound starting strong safety for the No. 11 Ole Miss Rebels. Teamed with fellow Philadelphia native Tysheem Johnson (Neumann Goretti) in the Ole Miss defensive backfield, Young is tied for seventh on the team in tackles (35) and has one interception for the 8-1 Rebels, who will play Alabama in an SEC showdown on Saturday.

Young often will check himself in the mirror as a reminder of where he is.

“If I had a chance to go back in time, I would tell the 17-year-old me to stay with my thing, keep working, and be patient because everything is going to come your way as long as you continue doing the right things and staying on the right path; if I would have done that, I would have definitely been in the (NFL) right now,” said Young, 22, a redshirt junior with three more years of eligibility. “I had a minor setback for a major comeback. I still think I’m coming back. I don’t think I’m back yet. I’m still trying to get to where I’m supposed to be going. I tell myself that what happened to me was just a detour. I’m still going the same route that I was supposed to go.”

» READ MORE: Isheem Young charged: Penn State recruit goes from star player to alleged robber

What sidetracked Young came on July 30, 2017. At five minutes past noon on a Sunday, Young, brandishing a black revolver, robbed the Wawa at 1602 Christopher Columbus Blvd. and took $13,600 from the store’s safe, according to police accounts. His older brother, Quasir Wingate, then a 21-year-old assistant store manager at the Wawa, handed Young the money. Rafi Johnson, also 21, drove the gold Buick sedan that picked Young up after the robbery.

A few days before turning 18, Young was charged with counts of aggravated assault, robbery, firearms violations, criminal conspiracy, and related offenses. On May 23, 2018, he was adjudicated delinquent on counts of robbery, conspiracy, and possession of an instrument of crime, prosecutors said, and a Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas judge remanded his case to the juvenile division of family court.

In a blink, Young’s Penn State football scholarship was rescinded even though he avoided a criminal conviction in adult court. He was committed to the Glen Mills Schools juvenile facility.

“That’s when I started thinking about building back up again,” Young said. “[At Glen Mills], they allowed me to work out and run to stay in shape. I think my biggest motivation was the college coaches that were still interested in me. I knew Penn State was out. I wasn’t going to quit on myself. Knowing schools out there still wanted me pushed me. I also knew the people who backed me up, and there were a lot of people who didn’t. The people who didn’t support me I just didn’t speak with anymore. It forced me to make my circle a lot tighter. There were people that I knew since I was young that turned their backs on me. I just didn’t want to talk to them. I even had some family turn their backs on me.”

Young was fortunate to have others who didn’t. Albie Crosby, for one, was his coach during his sophomore and junior years at Imhotep before taking over at Neumann Goretti. His aunt, Colleen Young-Horton, helped raise funds for his bail. Young says she was the only family member to visit him in CFCF and attended each of his hearings. Current Imhotep coaches Devon Johnson and Cy Woodland were there for moral support. Attorney Richard F. Klineburger III, who graduated from West Catholic with Crosby, handled Young’s case pro bono.

“Coach Albie led the charge in getting Isheem help, and Richard Klineburger went above and beyond for Isheem,” said Young-Horton, who grew up in Philadelphia and is a social worker in Lancaster. “I remember visiting Isheem in prison and crying in the parking lot after I got out. I cry today when I see him playing on TV.

“I don’t want Isheem to wind up like the other males, on both sides, in this family. He’s the one that’s going to make it. I was hard on Isheem then, and I’m hard on him now because I want him to make it. This is his road to redemption.

“It bothered me that a lot of people, people within the Imhotep community, who turned their backs on him. When that happened to him, a lot of people ran away. When he was a beast on the field, and he’s always been a beast on the field, they were all behind him. I remember my brother [Crawford Jr., Isheem’s father] telling me they would tell Isheem to put the football down and go to bed. He didn’t want to. They had to force him to sleep because he wanted to play football all night. I’m very proud of Isheem. He’s going to make it to the top.”

Another key figure was current Eagles assistant coach Tyler Scudder, who because of NFL compliance issues pertaining to current NFL coaches speaking about current college players was unable to comment for this story.

When other schools backed away from Young, Scudder gave Young a chance when he was a coach at Iowa State.

“I was driving in Michigan when I heard about Isheem, and it was a shock. I couldn’t believe it, and as soon as I found out it was accurate, we reached out to Richard, and he took it from there,” Crosby said. “His aunt, Colleen, was a huge help. None of us were about to give up on Isheem. Anyone who truly loved Isheem wasn’t going to give up on him. I think what gets lost in here is what Tyler did, taking a chance on Isheem, knowing there was some baggage. We all had a common plan, and that was to figure out what we could do to help Isheem out before he got caught up in the system.

“Once Richard got Isheem tried as a juvenile, we had to work on getting Isheem a school where he could play. A lot of schools turned us down. Tyler Scudder was the one coach who picked up and gave him that chance. I met Tyler when he was coaching at Duquesne [2014-17]. Tyler got Isheem into Iowa State, and the rest is history.”

Young reclassified to the class of 2019. In 2020, Young was the Big 12 co-defensive freshman of the year. In 2021, he was fourth on the Cyclones in tackles. He wanted a greater challenge and felt he was good enough to play in the SEC, so he placed his name in the transfer portal.

It didn’t take long for Mississippi head coach Lane Kiffin to grab him and highly respected Ole Miss defensive co-coordinator and safeties coach Chris Partridge to shape him.

“I feel as though I’ve improved a lot, coming from Iowa State and coming into this program; I owe a lot to Coach Partridge, because he’s made me a better player,” said Young, who carries a 3.0 GPA majoring in multidisciplinary studies and is on track to graduate in December 2023. “When I came to Mississippi this year, it’s like I came in here as a freshman. I was learning the defense while learning Cover 3 and Cover 2, certain coverages we didn’t do at Iowa State. I was learning all of that and learning in a new environment. I think I adapted quick. I had a solid fall camp. The past couple of games were a little up and down, but I definitely have a lot more to improve on. I have to get 10 times better over these games.”

He paused and added:

“This is where I belong. I know the route that I took wasn’t the best. It’s why when I look around and see where I am, I tell myself every day that I have to push myself even harder. I tell myself how I got out of my situation, and I tell myself that I’m not finished yet. I have a new responsibility in my life. I block out a lot about that time in my life. I know I could have sunk. There are kids out there that have made bad decisions. I want to be someone kids could look at and see what I’ve done. I have a son now. I must succeed for him.”