Dinuba QB Isaac Leppke creating college choices

Isaac Leppke will become a college athlete, if he so chooses.

One of the Central Section’s top three-sport athletes, Leppke has a scholarship offer from Fresno Pacific for track and field, a sport in which the Dinuba High senior is among the state’s leading returning hurdlers.

But football is his passion and the Emperors’ second-year signal caller wants to follow in the footsteps of his two predecessors – Marcus McMaryion (Oregon State) and David Rico (Cal Lutheran) – and become a college quarterback.

“There is nothing better than football,” said Leppke, who also plays basketball and was Dinbua’s second-leading rebounder last season. “If I have to go down the track route, then that’s fine and that’s what was meant to happen. But I’d love to play football.”

The 6-foot-4, 180-pounder receives a big opportunity to bolster his résumé for football recruiters Friday when he leads The Bee’s No. 13-ranked Emperors against No. 8 and reigning Division III champion Hanford in one of the section’s marquee games of the week. Kickoff from Dinuba’s Claud Hebert Field has been pushed back to 8 p.m. as a precaution to the heat and poor air quality caused by the Rough fire.

Dinuba coach Kevin Scharton said the key to earning a scholarship is winning football games, which Leppke has done so far.

The Emperors went 11-2 last season, winning the Central Sequoia League title and finishing as the Division II runner-up while Leppke completed 59 percent of his passes for 1,464 yards with 14 touchdowns against five interceptions.

Leppke has been even more effective in Dinuba’s 2-0 start this season, completing 62 percent of his passes for 225 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions heading into the showdown against Hanford (2-0).

Cal Poly, Sacramento State, Northern Arizona, New Mexico and North Dakota are among the schools that have shown some interest in Leppke as a quarterback, but he has not received an offer yet.

“A lot of it will be how he handles this year,” Scharton said. “College coaches want to see leaders. He’s got to be efficient, run our offense and win games. That’s what college coaches are looking for.”

And Scharton should know, considering he’s sent his past two quarterbacks – and three overall in 14 seasons at Dinuba – to play at the college level.

“It comes down to Coach Scharton. He knows the game so well,” Leppke said. “He’s the smartest coach I’ve ever known. That has a lot to do with it, and it shows with all the quarterbacks who have come out of this program.”

Leppke has less to prove in track and field after putting himself on the recruiting map as a junior, when he finished 12th in the state in the 110 high hurdles in 14.55 seconds. He also earned a trio of top-six finishes at the Central Section Masters meet, placing second in the 110 high hurdles (14.58), fifth in the 300 intermediate hurdles (40.21) and sixth in the high jump (6-3).

In addition to the scholarship offer from Fresno Pacific, Leppke has an official recruiting visit to Iowa planned for October and has also received interest from USC, Cal, Northeastern, Eastern Michigan and Brown.

“I feel my body was made for (hurdling,)” Leppke said. “It’s been easy to pick up on. I am pushing to get top three in state this year. I want to get faster and hopefully get some more track offers.”

Academics won’t be a problem when it comes time for Leppke to decide on a college path. He’s a 4.0 student who’s involved in a variety of campus activities.

“He’s that special kid,” Scharton said. “I think he will be able to write his own ticket one of these days out of high school, whether it be football, track or both. He’s a down-to-earth kid and he puts his time into his crafts.”

This story was originally published September 10, 2015 at 4:56 PM with the headline "Dinuba QB Isaac Leppke creating college choices."