How a 5-foot-5, 333-pound Mifflin tackle became an overnight internet sensation
2024 Berks football coverage
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As soon as Ismael Ayala took his defensive stance Friday against Pleasant Valley the trash talk began.
The guys on the opposite side of the line took one look at the 5-5, 333-pound Gov. Mifflin tackle, saw his belly hanging out over his football pants, and immediately dismissed him as a player.
No way, they figured, a guy who looks like that was going to be able to do more than take up space.
They found out differently early in the second half when Ayala stormed through the line on consecutive plays to record quarterback sacks, part of a big defensive effort in the Mustangs’ 35-0 season-opening win.
Ayala gleefully skipped back to the huddle following the second sack, raising his forefinger to the sky. Within a few days people across the nation became enamored with that image on social media; practically overnight the heretofore unheralded Ismael Ayala Vargas IV became the most famous high football player in America.
“Crazy,” Ayala said Wednesday afternoon before practice as his teammates jogged by, slapping him on the back with encouragement.
That video, initially posted by BNB Media, which produced the Livestream broadcast of Mifflin’s opener for Mike Drago Sports, has gone viral, with more than 2,000,000 views.
Former Wyomissing lineman Ross Tucker, who has nearly 300,000 followers on Twitter, was among the first to re-tweet the video. It was soon picked up by others who follow him, some of whom cover the NFL.
The sight of the wide-bodied Ayala, not built like your typical high school football player, resonated with people from coast to coast, many of whom can relate because of their own waistline battles.
Maybe they see ‘Ish’ as a guy unlikely to succeed, a guy who gets overlooked or lost in the shuffle. An underdog. He readily admits you don’t see many guys built like him succeeding on the football field.
He was determined to be one who does. He weighed nearly 370 pounds when he arrived at Mifflin as a sophomore. He soon bonded with Mifflin strength coach and defensive line coach Brandon Orndorff and realized he could change his shape, and his life, through hard work and dedication.
“This kid has improved immensely over the last three years,” said Gov. Mifflin athletic director John Guiseppe. “He lives in the weight room. He’s a classic story of working hard to get where he (wanted to be).”
By the start of his junior season Ayala was down to 350 pounds and a starter on the defensive line. He ended up third on the team in tackles.
Now he’s the strongest player on the team. He has performed a 500-pound squad and a 425-pound front squat, breaking school records set by Nick Singleton, a legendary workout warrior who’s now a starting tailback at Penn State.
“I’m trying to get past him on the bench,” Ayala said after tying Singleton’s record of 375.
‘Ish’ likes food – “mostly everything,” he admits – but watches what he eats, makes sure to down plenty of proteins, drink plenty of water, and hit the treadmill every day.
“When I first got here, I didn’t look like a football player,” said Ayala, who transferred from Muhlenberg. “I looked like I had never played the sport in my life, and it’s crazy because I’ve been playing since I was 5. I think everybody was doubting me.”
Guys who look like ‘Ish’ are quickly dismissed when they show up. Acting head coach Mick Vecchio admits that upon first glance he and other Mifflin coaches never thought Ayala would play a down for the Mustangs.
Ayala is one of those rare types, like former Chicago Bears lineman William “The Refrigerator” Perry, who can compete despite not looking like they’re in tip-top shape.
Ayala is always among the last to finish when the Mustangs do “gassers” at practice, but he finishes them.
“He does it all,” Vecchio said. “Some of the conditioning (drills) we do are pretty hard. And he never complains. Ever. He really, truly, has the respect of all the kids. Everybody loves him.”
That was true even before he was taking down rival quarterbacks. Teachers at Gov. Mifflin know ‘Ish’ as a polite, respectful student committed to his academics.
“Greatest kid in the world,” Guiseppe said.
“Very personable,” Vecchio said. “Just fun. Whenever you see him, you’ve gotta smile.”
Kristyna Eagle, a counselor at Mifflin, said success in football has changed Ayala’s life. Not only are his dreams of playing college football now realistic but it has helped his self-image.
“You can see him walk with a little more confidence,” Eagle said. “Now he’s ‘Ish’ the football player, not ‘Ish’ the big kid who plays football.”
Earlier this year Ayala made a statement by dying his hair bleach blond.
“The ‘Ish’ I knew before wouldn’t have done that,” Eagle said, “because he wouldn’t have wanted to stick out more. That’s just a self-confidence thing.”
Ayala said his confidence on the field began to grow as a sophomore when he was on the scout team going against Mifflin’s No. 1 offensive linemen. They had trouble keeping him out of the backfield. He soon realized this his low center of gravity, combined with his lower body strength, made it difficult for taller guys to handle him.
Line coaches are always reminding their guys to stay low; ‘Ish’ doesn’t need a reminder. He’s down there already.
“Somebody who’s 6-3, 6-4, tries to get under me, it’s gonna be really hard for them,” he said. “I’m really strong in the legs, so if I’m gonna go for a sack it’s gonna be really hard to keep me away from the quarterback.”
Muggsy Bogues had the same kind of reverse advantage in the NBA. At 5-3 Bogues was a foot shorter than many of the guys trying to guard him. He ran rings around those guys.
Ayala has succceeded because of what he once thought was a disadvantage, a fact witnessed by millions across the country.
“I just posted that film (of highlights on Hudl) and said: ‘Whatever happens, happens,’ ” Ayala said. “And that happened. I had no idea. These last couple days have been kind of crazy. I walk into class (and) everybody keeps telling me that I’m famous.”
That’s quite a turn for a guy who’s been dismissed at first glance much of his life.
The insults – some hurled insensitively by people safely tucked away on the internet – roll off Ish’s big back. He is unfazed.
When those same insults come face-to-face, across the line of scrimmage, it only serves to motivate him.
“It makes me just want to come after the quarterback even more,” he said. “So, for the other team, I wouldn’t recommend it.”
