Richard Young going worldwide: ESPNU to broadcast Lehigh football Friday against Lake Gibson

Lehigh head coach James Chaney tried to keep the big news a secret from his players. It got out.

Administrators had been working on something special for more than a year, so it was no surprise that rumors of a once-in-a-lifetime showcase got back to the team before Chaney could reveal all.

On Friday night, for the first time since Noel Devine’s heyday at North Fort Myers in 2006, a Lee County football program will host a nationally televised game on an ESPN network when the Lightning face Lake Gibson at 8 p.m. on ESPNU.

“It’s the craziest thing I’ve ever heard,” Lehigh senior lineman Jaheim Buchanon said. “When I first heard it, I was amazed.”

Previously: Lehigh football program to play on national television for the first time

Lehigh 5-star running back Richard Young announces commitment to Alabama Crimson Tide

Putting together something of this scale is not simple on an administrative end, and the team itself is under pressure to deliver after an unsettling 0-2 start to the season. But a national spotlight can be worth all the toil.

“For us to be able to play on a national stage, to me, not only promotes Lehigh, but it promotes the area,” Chaney said. “We’re just humbled and happy that ESPN could make that happen for us.”

Lehigh football program progresses

Chaney and former Lehigh athletic director Greg Coleman had long discussed the possibility of an ESPN game for the program.

The breakout of a certain five-star running back – Alabama commit Richard Young – made that prospect more feasible.

“The bottom line is Richard is the one that made this possible,” Coleman said.

Coleman also credited what Chaney has been able to build during his tenure at Lehigh.

Former Lehigh players like running back Chris Curry, who played at LSU before transferring to Utah, Illinois defensive back Quan Martin, FSU defensive back Omarian Cooper and Auburn wide receiver Tar'varish Dawson, just to name a few Lightning alums now on the field for Power Five schools, showed what could be possible for an athlete from Lehigh Acres.

“A lot of the kids are there because of Coach Chaney and his track record of getting kids to the next level,” Coleman said.

And the program has never had a player the caliber of Young. The recruiting frenzy for the powerful runner – long ranked the top running back in his class – saw Power-5 coaches helicoptering onto school grounds earlier this year to woo Young.

“Richard obviously being Richard helps but there’s a reason why Richard ended up at Lehigh,” Coleman said. “There’s a reason why these athletes ended up at Lehigh.”

After seven years at Lehigh, Coleman left for the athletic director job at his alma mater Bishop Verot in June. Lehigh hired Ernesto Adamo to replace him.

Coleman won’t be on the sidelines on Friday but said he was “extremely excited” for his former school.

“I’ve got the game Tivo’d so I can go back and watch it after the (Bishop Verot) game,” he said.

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ESPN plans in motion

Coleman began trying to find ways to get on the ESPN radar last April, making calls to other Florida athletic directors who might know how to get in touch.

Eventually, Coleman broke through, hearing back from ESPN in May. They were interested in featuring Lehigh in a clash against Lake Gibson as part of the 2022 GEICO ESPN High School Football Showcase, managed by Paragon.

At the time, the matchup would have been a showcase for two five-star prospects: Young and Lake Gibson cornerback Cormani McClain, who transferred to Lakeland over the summer.

“For the longest time, I thought Lehigh was going to lose the game because of that (transfer) situation,” Coleman said.

The contract was finalized over the summer and announced in August.

An ESPN game will be new territory for the Lightning, but that’s not the case for Lake Gibson – almost exactly a year ago the Braves played Lowndes in a nationally televised game, losing 58-47. Even without McClain, the team is led by a talented rushing attack featuring Jacobe Fowler, who has offers from UConn, Coastal Carolina and FAU.

"It's going to be fun, but I told the guys, it's just another game and that's what they need approach it," Lake Gibson coach Rich Pringle said. "Would you be this stressed out if it wasn't on ESPN? The answer is no. I know it's hard, but you have to put it aside, especially if you want to play at the next level. They have to be able to ignore the cameras and ignore the hype, and just play football."

What goes into a national TV game

A lot more goes into hosting Friday’s game than ESPN cameras showing up and rolling.

James A. Adams Memorial Stadium was subjected to a site survey by ESPN and Paragon, per the contract between Lehigh and Paragon Marketing Group obtained through a county records request.

“As soon as we found out that we had the game, we went to work on a lot of things, especially like a stadium facelift,” Coleman said.

The administration went to great lengths to ensure the field would be in pristine condition for the game, even moving the team’s kickoff classic on the road so that the Lake Gibson game would be the team’s first home game of the season. The home junior varsity football game against Naples became a road game.

The field was ripped up and replaced with brand new sod, Adamo said.

Lehigh incurs all costs associated with staging the event, according to the contract. PMG owns sponsorship rights, which means the usual local sponsors will be covered up, and PMG retains telecast-related revenue.

Lehigh will be compensated $1,000 for their participation and granting PMG these rights, although the financial terms of the contractual agreement are confidential.

ESPN required player headshots and questionnaires from the coaches and players for the broadcast.

For Adamo, it will be a remarkable first home game as a first-time athletic director, and, for his part, he envisions a game experience more attuned to the fans with amenities like food trucks.

“This is the perfect time for fans to come see what our football program is all about,” Adamo said.

Devine shined on ESPN 16 years ago

Devine became an early YouTube star when highlights of his spinning, juking, cutting runs comparable to Detroit Lions legend Barry Sanders became an internet favorite during his North Fort Myers career. He became so popular ESPN, which was not known for airing high school sports in those days, added the Red Knights and Devine as one of their earliest high school football broadcasts on ESPNU.

James Iandoli, the head coach of North Fort Myers in 2006, recalled an unmistakable ambiance for the team’s ESPN game against Fort Myers that year.

“It felt like a college game,” he said. “The stands were packed. There were people walking from a mile away down the road.”

Iandoli called it the most memorable game of his coaching career. For the Red Knights, it was key to avoid distractions in the week leading up to the 24-6 win.

“It was a fun time, and we were excited they were coming but you worried about your kids not paying attention to the task at hand,” he said.

'I made my mark': With family by his side, Devine enters West Virginia Hall of Fame

Devine, who would go on to play at West Virginia and have a Mountaineers Hall-of-Fame career, didn't disappoint as he ran for 177 yards and two touchdowns.

“I wouldn’t put too much emphasis on it, just go about your day-to-day and let it take its natural course and enjoy the moment," Iandoli added. "Don’t try to do anything special. It’s going to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience and (Chaney)’s going to have a blast.”

An important aspect of this game will be the increased viewership, especially from college scouts.

“We look forward to it, and I hope, in some kind of way, guys who may not have as many offers or may not have any looks – I hope that platform puts them on a national stage where somebody can make a phone call and say, ‘Hey man, I want to give that kid a try,’” Chaney said. “That’s all our kids are asking for is one try, so we’re excited about that.”

Added Lake Gibson's Pringle: "I'm not super concerned that the stage will be too big. We've had some talks this week and have done some things that will relieve some of it. But you won't know until you get in front of the lights how well they perform. If we do our job, I think it will be a real good game."

Though Young’s profile played a major part in making this happen, he is not worried about individual achievements on Friday.

“We’re all going to shine on ESPN together, and we’re going to showcase all of our talent, not just mine, but all of our talent,” Young said.

Win or lose, for the first time in 16 years, Lee County high school football players will get the kind of exposure they dream about when they put on the pads.

“This is something we can tell our kids,” Buchanon said. “They can tell their kids. This is something we can always look back on.”

Follow News-Press Sports Reporter Dustin Levy on Twitter: @DustinBLevy. For additional coverage of sports across Southwest Florida, follow @newspresssports and @ndnprepzone on Instagram.

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: ESPNU airing Alabama commit Richard Young, Lehigh football vs. Lake Gibson