By Mike London
mike.london@salisburypost.com

HICKORY — Isaiah “Ike” Whitaker was one of those rare athletes who put up larger numbers in college than in high school.

Whitaker was a really good football and wrestling athlete for Salisbury High, especially during the 2008-09 and 2009-10 school years, but he achieved even greater recognition with the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears football program. Whitaker was announced recently as a member of L-R’s Hall of Fame Class of 2024.

Lenoir-Rhyne ran the ball on almost every play during Whitaker’s college days. Mike Houston, who would move on to the Division I ranks, was the head coach for three of Whitaker’s seasons. Houston’s option offense would always start games by establishing Whitaker inside. Gradually, the Bears’ offense would move toward the wings, but a lot of wins began with Whitaker setting a physical tone for the game by pounding the ball up the middle.

From 2011-14, Whitaker rushed for 2,700 rushing yards. He is ninth all-time for the  program with 562 career rushing attempts. He is one of the 16 L-R backs to notch at least six 100-yard games.

In high school, Whitaker was known as “Ironman” or “Iron Ike.” He was a three-way  player for Salisbury head coach Joe Pinyan, excelling on special teams, offense and defense. He was only 5-foot-7, but he was so quick and strong he could play in the box on defense at linebacker or even on the line. On offense, he was a lethal fullback, a super blocker and a perfect inside complement to the burners that the Hornets were sending to the edge.

Whitaker’s high school stats were very good, although not amazing, mostly because the Hornets always had three or four rushers sharing the load. As a junior, Whitaker rushed 89 times for 646 yards and six touchdowns. As a senior, he rushed 166 times for 810 yards and 10 TDs.

Whitaker’s most memorable high school moment may have been his 65-yard sprint on a trap play late in a playoff game with Shelby when the Hornets were trying to run out the clock. Whitaker toted the ball from the Salisbury 24 to the Shelby 11, and Romar Morris scored a clinching touchdown.

Whitaker also excelled on the wrestling mat in high school. He was 2A state runner-up at 189 pounds in 2010.

As a Bear, Whitaker was named to three consecutive SAC All-Conference teams from 2011-13 and was a back-to-back All-America pick at the fullback position in 2012 and 2013.

Whitaker helped lead the Bears to national prominence. Lenoir-Rhyne took home three-straight SAC titles from 2011-13 and went to the NCAA Division II championship game in 2013.

Whitaker always played well when he came back to Salisbury to play against Catawba. “Ike is Ike and he always plays with fire,” Houston said after one of Whitaker’s visits. “But against Catawba, he does bring a little extra.”

Whitaker and his wife KC live in Hickory. They have three children.

He is a senior operations manager for Target Corporation Global Supply Chain and has been with the company for three years.