Developing into a wide receiver of Steele
Army's Isaiah Alston enjoyed breakout season with big games against Wake Forest and Missouri
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Long-time Army football observers view Isaiah Alston establishing a new wide receiver standard.
The Black Knights value their wideouts first and foremost for their ability to block on the perimeter in the triple-option running game. Alston, though, has NFL size and skills that project to the next level.
He’s a 6-foot-4, 195-pounder. He has speed. He has exceptional hands. He wins one-on-one balls with defensive backs. Check out the one-handed catch he made against the sideline on a 4th-and-9 for a 21-yard touchdown against then-No. 16-ranked Wake Forest. It’s on Youtube.
“Anytime I have a one-on-one matchup, that gets me excited,” Alston said. “But my role also is blocking, so I do what it takes.”
Joe Iacono, a 1993 West Point graduate who covers the team for GoBlackKnights.com of the Rivals network, prefaced his questions by telling Alston he’s the best Army receiver he’s seen the past 30 seasons. And it’s hard to argue with him.
Iacono referenced a time span that covers Army, Navy and Air Force collectively realizing the triple-option was the best way for service academy teams to compete at the Division I level. Air Force coach Fisher DeBerry led the way in the 1980s.
But if we go back 50-plus years, now Alston has some competition for setting a standard.
Gary Steele, Army’s first Black letterman (1966-68), was a second-team All-American pick as a senior with 27 catches for 496 yards, including a single-game Army record of eight catches for 156 yards against Penn State. He broke the record of the legendary “Lonely End,” Bill Carpenter. Steele also was a 6-9 high jumper on the track team. He was drafted in 17th round by the Detroit Lions but opted to pursue his military career in an era long before lucrative NFL contracts. He was inducted into the Army Hall of Fame in 2013.
Alston finished last season with 22 catches for 449 yards and three touchdowns but in the modern game, double or even triple his numbers to compare them to other receivers. Today’s wideouts play in pass-happy spread offenses with far more opportunities.
Alston’s production and potential for continued growth belies he was rated only a two-star recruit coming out of Mater Dei Prep in Middletown, New Jersey. Alston spent a year at the Army prep school before his admission to West Point.
“Physically, when he got here, he was the same height but much less physically developed,” Army coach Jeff Monken said. “You see him now and when his pads come off there and lumps and bumps (muscles) on his biceps and deltoids. He’s physically mature and that helps him be a physical player in our run or pass game. His knowledge of the game has improved.”
Alston showed he can compete against Power 5 opponents in the Wake Forest and Missouri games.
Against then-No. 16-ranked Wake Forest, a shootout on October 23 at sold-out Michie Stadium, Alston made a one-handed catch in the corner of the end zone on a 4th-and-9 pass for a 21-yard score. His touchdown trimmed the deficit to 49-42 in a game Wake Forest survived, 70-56. Alston finished the day with six receptions for 107 yards and two TDs.
In the Armed Forces Bowl win over Missouri, Alston set up a game-winning field goal as time expired. He caught a 10-yard pass, drew a 15-yard penalty when the defender grabbed his facemask as he ran to get open and grabbed a 11-yard pass on third-and-8 to the Missouri 24 to set up the winning kick as time expired.
But he has more on his mind than improving his reception statistics this season.
“My teammates encouraged me to become best blocker I can be so I can be the No. 1 receiver on a run or pass play,” he said. “That’s what has clicked for me. I want to be physical on the perimeter. Now adays a lot of defensive backs don’t want to make contact. As a receiver you can deliver the blow. You don’t have to get hit by the DB.”
His focus on his blocking skills comes after briefly flirting with the transfer portal and to play at a school with more pass opportunities for him. The move raised the question if schools began to recruit to him, which is one of the concerns college coaches express over the lack of oversight guiding the transfer portal and Name, Image and Likeness deals.
“I’m grateful to be back and grateful for them accepting me back on the team,” Alston said. “I had to prove my loyalty to them. That’s not going to change. This is where I’m going to graduate.”
His return brought full circle his original commitment when he was lightly recruited out of high school.
“When I made decision come to Army, it was a life decision rather than a football decision,” he said. “I knew football was not forever. An education at West Point will set you up for a lifetime. That was my thought process coming out of his school
“When I took my official visit, I loved it. I loved the guys here. I loved the brotherhood. That’s what it did it for me. Jobs are hard to come by these days and this place sets you up, and you’ll still have a chance at the NFL.”
He sounds like a throwback to Gary Steele. He plans to play like one, too.
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