Archbishop Wood’s Yasin Lowry overcame hurdles to be an ‘even better’ running back

Despite a recent coaching change, the senior is starting to dominate on the ground and feeling like himself again after suffering a season-ending injury last year.

by Aaron Carter

Published Sept. 19, 2024, 5:00 a.m. ET

Yasin Lowry is built to handle adversity.

The 5-foot-11, 210-pound senior running back at Archbishop Wood has had a lot of practice lately.

If it wasn’t a test of loyalty, it was a long commute. If it wasn’t playing a new position, it was a knee injury, a subsequent knock to his confidence.

Last week, it was a last-second coaching change.

Dave Armstrong, the Central Bucks West legend who played fullback at Michigan, stepped down just days before previously winless Wood opened Catholic League Blue Division play against Archbishop Carroll.

Lowry, still new to running the football, finished with 167 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries, leading Wood to its first win of the season. Next, the Vikings (1-3) will face Neumann Goretti (0-3) on Saturday afternoon.

“I think it just shows what type of person I am,” Lowry said, sitting inside Wood’s Warminster campus. “It shows where I come from, because where I come from, it’s not easy. It’s hard just growing up as a kid in Philadelphia, so adversity is just something I’ve dealt with a lot in my life. It just shows that I’m a resilient person. I’ve persevered through all of the obstacles I have faced.”

That includes last year when, five games into his first season at running back, Lowry injured his right knee on the first offensive play of Wood’s homecoming game against Roman Catholic.

“When it first happened,” Lowry said, “I didn’t know what to think. I thought it was bad because knee injuries are probably the worst thing for a football player. I know some players never come back, so I was just scared not knowing what was going to happen.”

The damage wasn’t severe, but Lowry did miss the rest of the season.

Support from his teammates and coaches, combined with physical therapy, helped him return.

His next hurdle was mental when he returned to training camp this summer.

“Honestly, not playing for a long time, you lose confidence,” he said. “You never know after an injury like that, what type of player you’re going to be. But, luckily, I just kept my head down and kept working, and I was able to come back better.”

The comeback hit another snag when Lowry fumbled twice in the first game of the season.

“We’re really a family, so when one person is going through something, they’re all there for you,” Lowry said. “I was hard on myself, but my teammates kept believing in me, so that helped. Second game, I came back and felt like I was the same player again, even better.”

He rushed for 157 yards and two touchdowns in a Week 2 loss to Cardinal O’Hara. Last week, two of his touchdowns were 35-yard runs. The third, which was from 5 yards out, proved decisive in the Vikings’ 20-14 victory against Carroll.

“Last year was tough for him,” said interim coach Brian Goettner, who was an assistant last season. “And to really start to dominate this year, especially on Saturday, it’s been good to see that he’s ready to go. It was a great game for him, great game for our team.”

The family atmosphere at Wood, Lowry says, is why he stayed when outside voices suggested that he transfer.

He grew up in South Philly but lives in West Philly now.

Sure, it takes him more than an hour to get to school by 7 a.m., which means his eyelids often rise before the sun.

But Lowry values loyalty, and he’s confident, one way or another, that he’s in the right place.

“I’m a loyal person,” Lowry said. “These are my brothers. If I’m going to win, I’m winning with them. If I lose, I’m losing with them. That’s just the type of person I am. … It’s all just hard work. It’ll all pay off eventually, no matter what. I feel like it’s all going to pay off one day.”