Copley High School graduate Izzy Callaway is part of a well-known Summit County sports family whose patriarch, John, played basketball and served as a team captain at Kent State University in the late 1990s.

Because of her father’s KSU hoops history, Callaway’s decision to transfer in March from Walsh University to the University of Akron and join the Zips women’s basketball team has led to some comical moments. Theories about blood superseding rivalry have been tested.

“My dad's a big Kent State guy, so it was kind of a hard pill for him to swallow at first,” Callaway told the Beacon Journal during UA’s recent 2025 Tipoff Reception at Rhodes Arena. “But, of course, he's my biggest supporter. So, right when we got here for our visit, he put on his Akron jacket, and it was a bi

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