FANTASTIC FIFTEEN: Westover’s Isaiah Burns has big goals for senior season

Editor’s note: This is the 12th installment of a series highlighting some of the top high school football players in Albany and Lee County. In the past, it has been the “Dynamite Dozen” but this season it will be the “Fantastic Fifteen.”

ALBANY — Westover senior Isaiah Burns has big goals for himself and his Westover football team this season. It is his final year at Westover and the cornerback is looking to make the most of it.

But a big scare in the scrimmage against Mitchell County made it look like Burns’ season was going to end before it started. Burns made a crucial tackle after a Mitchell County receiver caught a pass, and the two players collided head-on and Burns’ head hit the ground hard after the tackle. Medical personnel quickly attended to the young Westover cornerback and he was put in a neck collar and hauled off the field into a waiting ambulance before being rushed to Phoebe Medical Center. Fortunately, it was all a big scare and Burns is planning to be in uniform and ready to play in Friday night’s season-opening game. So Burns still has his goals.

“I want us to get more wins this year,” Burns said. “I think if we work hard enough, we can get a region championship and fight for the state. For me personally, I have a goal of 10 interceptions this season.”

Burns believes strongly in his teammates and his coaches. In fact, it is his teammates that make him want to do all the work necessary to play football.

“That feeling I get when we are walking out onto the field before the game and I see all of my teammates excited and ready to play football. That’s what motivates me to get out there and do all this work,” said Burns.

He also looks to Cleveland Browns cornerback Denzel Ward for motivation and enjoys watching Ward play because of his attitude toward the game and his “swag.”

While his teammates are his main motivation, the coaching staff at Westover also has made a big impact on Burns.

“The players actually want to play football now,” he said. “We play football together and are committed to the team. We have become more of a family since Coach (Adam) Miller and the other coaches have come to Westover.”

Burns is a two-sport athlete at Westover. He plays football and is also on the track and field team where he competes 400-meter dash, the 1,600 relay, the 300-meter hurdles and the pole vault. He is in the education pathway at Westover and history is his favorite subject.

Burns, the son of Lavonda Stephens and Abner Stevens, began playing football when he was 5 years old. When he gets to college he intends to study criminal justice.

Joe Whitfield