It was a moment of joy on the high school gridiron.

“Before the game even started, I knew my brother is going to score,” declares Isaiah Turner, a running back with the Annandale Cardinals High School football team. “I just have a feeling.”

In the fourth quarter of an Oct. 22 game between Annandale and Spectrum, 14-year-old Josiah Turner, Isaiah’s brother, scored a touchdown.

He was wearing Isaiah’s jersey, #41.

“That was such a pivotal moment,” declares the boys’ mother, Joy. “Coach Walter allowed the kids to storm the field and took the penalty to kind of create joy for that moment, for our family and the community.”

“Totally took us by surprise,” smiled Mark Kovall, Annandale’s head defensive coordinator. “None of the coaching staff knew he was going to do this. And when it happened, and when they rushed the field, I still get chills. It was a very big moment.”

Isaiah, 16, was watching online from his hospital bed.

“I was just so proud of that moment, because it was cool to see my brother be able to get in there and score a touchdown,” he told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS during a Facetime interview. 

Isaiah is recovering from a major leg injury he sustained when he was tackled during a game on Oct. 11.

He’s now being treated at CentraCare-St. Cloud Hospital for compartment syndrome, a painful condition caused by pressure from internal bleeding.

“I think he got tackled by three guys. At first, he thought it was his left foot, because his left foot kind of curled under,” Joy Turner explains. “It’s basically a deep bruise that kept swelling up through the muscle to the point where it’s so swollen, blood isn’t able to go through.”

Isaiah has undergone six surgeries in about 12 days to treat the injury. His family hopes the most recent procedure will be his last.

On the football field, the 16-year-old learned lessons about teamwork. Now, he’s learning lessons about courage and positivity.

“I’m pretty positive, if mom says so,” Isaiah says, with a smile. “I always think on the positive side of things.”

Surgeons have removed the damaged tissue from the teen’s injured right leg, but there’s still lots of physical therapy ahead.

“Honestly, I just look at the end path. I know I’ve got to do it,” Isaiah exclaims. “I just want to be able to get it done, so I can go to the recovery process.”

His coaches believe it, too.

“If there’s a shot, he’s going to make it,” Kovall says. “This kid is going to do whatever it takes to get back to where he needs to be.”

The community is rallying around Isaiah, including a crowd-funding effort.

His family says they are grateful.

“This is actually bigger than football,” declares Joy Turner. “This is about a community and the support they’ve given. And we couldn’t ask to live in a better community and be where we’re at, so we’re super grateful.”

Isaiah is expected to return home from the hospital as early as this coming week.

Hope and help for a young player on a healing journey who now knows he and his family aren’t alone.