Zone Read: Isaia Glass Unplugged

This week “Zone Read” hits Music City to catch up with former Queen Creek High star, and Arizona State offensive tackle, Isaia Glass.

The graduate transfer is now a key starter for the 16th-ranked Vanderbilt Commodores who may have, with a couple of breaks, a path to the college football playoffs.

We discuss his growth as a player and person, playing at his third Power 4 school (played for Oklahoma State last season), pancakes, blocking for star quarterback Diego Pavia, and much more.

Compare college life in Stillwater, Oklahoma to college life in Nashville, Tennessee. “For sure. Stillwater and Nashville are, obviously, like a night and day difference. There’s not a lot in Stillwater. It’s a small town. I compare Nashville to Las Vegas of the south. Nashville is really fun. There’s a lot to do out here. A lot of resources. It’s a big attraction.

“Obviously, Stillwater is it’s own little spot. You’re not really there unless you go to [Oklahoma State] or live in that little town. If you want to go to a big city, you need to go an hour south to Oklahoma City, or an hour and fifteen minutes east to Tulsa. So, you’re sort of stuck in the middle. There’s not a lot going on. People ask me all the time about Stillwater but I really enjoyed it. It was boring in a good way. There wasn’t a lot to do but I really enjoyed it. I took advantage of it being boring and just focused on my stuff.”

Staying on Nashville. A better night out for you: a nice dinner in The Gulch, or heading down to Broadway for some fun? “Oh, that’s tough. I mean, it really just depends on who I’m with. If I’m at a nice dinner with my boys, or I’m down on Broadway with my boys, I could go either way. 

“I’m really tight with the [players] here, and I haven’t even been here for a year. It’s crazy. The whole team is really tight. I could go either way [The Gulch or Broadway].”

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God has opened a new chapter in my life and I’m blessed to be given the opportunity! Anchor down ⚓️👇🏽 pic.twitter.com/DCi602NWtF

— Isaia Glass 🇦🇸💭 (@IsaiaGlass) December 18, 2024

After you decided to leave Oklahoma State and enter the portal, why was Vandy the best fit for you? “It’s crazy because Vandy wasn’t one of the places I was [looking at]. But, they reached out, I talked to their coaches. I was taking calls [from other schools] as the day went on. Then I kept getting calls from [Vandy] coaches.

“Obviously, I watched some of their games last season and saw they had some big wins and should-have wins. They were definitely a contender. Then Diego [Pavia] and (starting running back) Sedrick [Alexander] hit me up. I knew one of their offensive linemen who’s now our starting right guard, and I knew another one of their o-linemen from this big group chat. They started making a big push.

“The portal [window] is so short but those days feel so long recruiting-wise. They made a huge push and I remember I was sick when the portal first opened. Everyone was trying to get me on visits right away but I was dead sick. I had graduation [from Oklahoma State] on a Friday on that Wednesday I started feeling a little better. My parents were like, ‘Why don’t you try to get a visit on Thursday? Just take a day trip.’

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Year 🖐🏽 pic.twitter.com/Ev3repiLUp

— Isaia Glass 🇦🇸💭 (@IsaiaGlass) August 15, 2025

“They said, ‘Yes, we’d love to have you,’ I went out there and it was just straight business. It was my second time in the portal so they didn’t need to wow me with anything. I talked to the guys. I really liked it. Schematically, I felt like it was really o-line friendly. We switch sides. There is no left tackle or right tackle. There’s a quick side and a strong side. So, we play left side or right side during the game, depending what the call is. For me, I played both sides in college and if I can capitalize on this, it will look good to NFL teams because I’m versatile.

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Queen Creek alum @IsaiaGlass gets some FaceTime on ESPN College Gameday pic.twitter.com/WxxoBxzn8G

— ArizonaVarsity.com 🔥PREPS🔥 (@AZHSFB) October 25, 2025

“I really enjoyed [Vanderbilt] on my one day trip. I took a visit to Arkansas, but the Vanderbilt players kept hitting me up. Pavia was hitting me up. Even when I left [Vanderbilt], everything still felt good. I had a lot of other visits set up, but it checked all the boxes. Spots in the portal fill up quick. If I had my situation, might as well take advantage of it.”    

What did Diego specifically pitch you on? “I think the first thing he said to me was, ‘Are you trying to win a Natty or what?’ I was like, ‘What?'[laughing]. I didn’t know Diego like that. Obviously, I do now, and that’s right on course for Diego. He didn’t have a crazy pitch. We just talked a little bit. I was like, ‘Man, this dude’s cool.’ I saw his success from last season. I knew he was legit.”

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My guyyyyy https://t.co/53DKftonSL

— Isaia Glass 🇦🇸💭 (@IsaiaGlass) September 25, 2025

What’s the most unique part of blocking for a quarterback like him? Do you ever catch yourself just watching him scramble around and do his thing back there? “That dude is wild. Maybe it was last game or the week before, this dude is scrambling. The play went [crazy] and I’m running around trying to find work and he’s in the back just junking and dodging everyone. You don’t know to block because you don’t know which way he’s going to go.

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Golden Arm Award Top 10

⚓️ Diego Pavia#2Turnt | @GoldenArmAward pic.twitter.com/oZ0uod04Ew

— #16 Vanderbilt Football (@VandyFootball) October 30, 2025

“But it’s fun, though. Diego, obviously, people see what they see on social media – that he’s wild and he likes to talk trash, but no one sees how smart he is and how much work he puts in. That’s why everyone in this program has his back and supports him. He’s authentic. We all know about the work he puts in and what he does behind the scenes. It’s so fun playing with him. He’s so smart…he’s definitely the general back there.” 

You played in the Pac-12, the Big 12 and now you’re in the SEC. Is there a pretty decent sized leap from the first two into now the SEC? “Yes and no. Obviously, guys in the SEC can be bigger here but there’s good talent everywhere. I feel like the Pac-12 was loaded with talent and I was sad to see it disband. The Pac-12 was really, really good. The Big 12 was good, too. There were some teams that have some really good players [in the Big 12]. 

“The culture and the environment in the SEC is like night and day [compared to the other two conferences]. Just how they care about football down here and what it means to them.”

Do you think if you win out and finish 10-2, you’re a playoff team? “I’d like to hope so. I really, really hope so. With the second loss, we still sort of control our own destiny but some things could go to where we can’t. I honestly don’t know. We’re just trying to take it one game at a time. Handle business this week and then do the same thing over and over again.”

[Glass recently signed an NIL deal with Cracker Barrel] How has the first week been as VP of Pancake Communications? “(laughing) That’s been fun. It was cool when the opportunity came up. They reached out and pitched me the idea. One of my teammates at Oklahoma State, his brother did the same [deal] at Texas Tech so I saw what it looked like and what not. I thought it was funny. I thought it was a cool thing.”

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This is awesome 🤣🤣

Former @QC_football and current Vanderbilt offensive lineman Isaia Glass announced on his Instagram that he’s signed an NIL deal with Cracker Barrel as the “VP of Pancake Communications.”

“They’re literally paying me to talk about Pancakes.”@AZHSFB pic.twitter.com/MTWK3D6CKB

— Adam Beadle (@therealbeadle) October 30, 2025

Are you the type of guy, when you go to Cracker Barrel, either before or after your meal, you sift through that gift shop and spend a little more money?  “I think I’ve only bought some candy but I’m always in there looking. Looking for random stuff that I know I don’t need or even necessarily want but me and my family love to look.”

Vandy is such an incredible academic school. What are you focusing on in your grad year? “I’m getting my Master’s in Legal Studies. 

“To be honest, my initial reaction was, ‘It’s my last year, I don’t really want to worry about school. I wanted to take the easy route and just take classes to stay eligible.’ But obviously, after talking to my parents, we decided that would be dumb to take the year at Vanderbilt and not leave with something. That would be stupid of me just to waste that. A degree from Vanderbilt holds a lot of weight. 

“It’s a one-year program so it fit well with how long I’m going to be here.

“If it’s meant for me to play in the [NFL], it’s meant to be, and if it’s not, it’s not. I just know when my college career is done, I’m going to everything to achieve that goal, and if it’s not in God’s plan, it’s not.”

You and I met for the first time way back in June of 2018. You were a tight end and defensive end at the time. Do you hold any grudges towards [Queen Creek head coach Travis Schureman] and his staff for eventually moving you to offensive tackle? I mean, Isaia, I think you could have been a star tight in the SEC, as well. “(laughing) I would have been a good tight end, for sure. I don’t think I could play at this level in the SEC but I know I could have been a tight end or d-end.

“Nah, I’m happy I made the switch. My dad was always nudging me, ‘Hey, man. You’re going to be a tackle. You’re going to be a tackle.’ I was like, ‘Bro, I’m not trying to do that. I’m not trying to play o-line. That sucks (laughing).’ Coach Schureman made the switch and I was like, ‘Oh, gosh.’ My dad always knew I was going to be a tackle. Obviously, it was a great switch and God had that plan for me.”