Grant High School might be home to the Cougars, but they have themselves one hell of a ball hawk this year.
Isaiah Mckinney is a defensive back for Grant High School who is a full-on eraser for whoever he is covering. Just don’t throw at him. He’s an explosive playmaker with a level of aggression at the position that you don’t see every day. Isaiah wants the ball, and he will do everything he can to get it. He can play all positions in the secondary as well as wide receiver, but it’s his ability on defense that he will likely be taking to the next level.
Instinct
The single skill that drives Isaiah Mckinney’s play as a defensive back is his instinctive ability to go to the football. When a runner has a ball in his hands, he is lightning quick to react, getting himself right to the ball. Mckinney’s two-way experience gives him intrinsic knowledge about how wide receivers run rows. He understands how his opponents’ positions and alignments interact with the sort of routes they run. This means he is constantly in position to make a play on the ball. And when he does make that play, he’s not just looking to bat it down – he wants the ball.
For Isaiah, it’s all about going after that ball. Isaiah’s aggression is the most fun part of his game. Once he gets in position, he uses his experience on offense to go up and play the ball and pick it off. His entire game revolves around being a ball hawk, already with 3 INTs this season. He is an elite ball tracker, and he turns into a wide receiver with the intention to catch the football for his team once he gets the chance.
Athleticism
Mckinney is an athletic prototype for a college defensive back. He’s big enough (6’0″ 175), fast enough (4.56 40), and agile enough (4.45 shuttle) to cover at the college level, and his game speed and agility is even better than those combine numbers. He plays really fast, and he has the agility to stay with any receiver he is covering. What impresses me the most is his hip fluidity, which is integral to the ability to cover. He’s able to rotate his body along with the cuts of the receiver and not get separated by the routes the opponent is running.
His athleticism is also shown via his ability with the ball in his hands. Whether it’s returning a punt, a kickoff, or an interception, Isaiah Mckinney is simply electric. He combines his speed and agility with great vision as a ball carrier and elusiveness in the open field. He’s not especially flashy in terms of juking people out, but he is very effective. He will simply move in a way that evades as many would-be tacklers as possible. It feels like every time he touches the ball, there is a 40+ yard return that is about to happen.
Conclusion
If you wanted to build a high school defensive back in a lab that can threaten to have a pick six as much as possible, I don’t know if you could build one better than Isaiah Mckinney. He has the ability and mentality to get to the ball and turn it over, and he has the athleticism to take it back the other way. His 3.1 GPA shows that he doesn’t slack in any part of his life, and that he has the hard working capacity to do whatever in the secondary the coach asks of him. He can play outside corner, he can play slot, he can play safety. He will do whatever he is asked, and many college coaches would get a lot from him being on their team.
What got you into football in the first place? What makes you love it?
I first started back in elementary school, when all my friends played little league football. That got me into football, so I tried it out, and I’ve fallen in love with it ever since.
What’s your favorite football memory?
It was my first year starting as a sophomore. I got a pick six in our game that we have every year against Buckeye. That’s probably my favorite memory.
What is your biggest strength on the field?
My biggest strength is being a zone cornerback, having the IQ to go get the ball when it’s in the air. Being able to read the receivers when they are in their routes, knowing their alignment and which routes they are going to run, as well as going down and making tackles.
What have you worked on to make yourself so good at that?
I’ve done a lot of cone drills, backpedal drills, ball drills. I also play some wide receiver, so that helps me to recognize what the other offense has going on.
What do you like more about playing cornerback rather than wide receiver?
When I play wide receiver, I would like to have the ball. When I’m on defense, I can make myself have the ball when I want to. When the ball is in the air, I can take the chance to go get the ball when I want it. When playing defense, I like being more aggressive.
Which NFL player do you try to take inspiration from most with your own game?
I try to model my game after Jalen Pitre, Sauce Gardner, Jalen Ramsey, and Tariq Woolen.
What has the recruiting process been like for you?
I’ve been talking to coaches. It’s been kind of stressful, because I know my potential and what I can do. But being at a small school, it’s hard to be where you want to be. I’ve gotten a JUCO offer from North Vermillion in Minnesota, but that’s mostly it.
What has been your biggest improvement to your game over the last year?
The biggest improvement has been going from the corner position to being a safety. I have to read zones better, and come down and make more tackles than I have to make as a corner. I’m better at just being able to track the ball, read the quarterback, and just read everything on the field.
What are some goals for yourself and your team this year?
I want to get at least 7 picks this season. I wanted to get on track to get 10 picks this season, but I only have 3 right now. I want our team to win district and to get farther in the playoffs. We’ve had two playoff appearances in the last few years, but I want to go farther this year.
What do you do outside of practice to improve?
I practice with my little brother. He’s a sophomore and also plays both WR and DB. I work with my other freshman DBs and WRs and try to push them the best I can, and to get them ready for the next season and the season after that after I’m gone. I try to get as much work in as I can.
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