Isaac Rex
Football - TE
College
Brigham Young University
Isaac Rex played high school football at San Clemente High School in his hometown in California. He was a consensus three-star prospect and was ranked a top-100 recruit in the state of California. He helped lead his team to the California State Championship his senior year, where he was the leading receiver in the playoffs. After the success of his senior season, he was invited to play in the Polynesian Bowl in Hawaii. Rex also was recruited as a basketball player in high school and was twice selected as a first-team All-South Coast shooting guard. He committed to BYU after also being recruited by USC, UCLA, Utah, Arizona State, Virginia, Utah State, Colorado State, Hawaii and San Jose State. After high school and before joining BYU, Rex served a full-time mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Samoa from 2017-2019.
As a freshman in 2019, Rex took a redshirt after playing in 3 games and totaling 1 reception for 23 yards. In 2020, he had an exceptional season, starting 12 games and hauling in 37 receptions for 429 yards and 12 touchdowns. His 12 touchdowns were tied for the most by a tight end in the nation and he was named a Freshman All-American by the Athletic for his big season.
As a redshirt sophomore, he started 12 games, catching 18 passes for 191 yards and 3 touchdowns. Towards the end of the season, however, he suffered a complex fracture of his ankle and had to have metal plates and screws inserted. Rex answered the bell in 2022, although he spent most of the year in pain and lost a lot of his speed and explosiveness. He was still able to soldier through and start 13 games while snaring 22 receptions for 320 yards and 6 touchdowns.
Rex came back to BYU for his senior season with one goal in mind—getting back to the playing style he showed early on in his career. He set the all-time record for touchdowns by a tight end in BYU history with 24 career touchdowns and proved that he was fully healthy from his fractured ankle. On the season, he finished with 34 catches for 422 yards and 3 touchdowns.