He was an All-American quarterback in 1951, when he guided the Baylor Bears football team to the Orange Bowl; he threw for 26 career touchdowns in college.
Isbell played minor league baseball for the Boston Red Sox and Brooklyn Dodgers organizations.
In fact, he had the best average of any Louisville batter with 25 or more games player, ahead of Charlie Maxwell, Harry Agganis, and Ken Aspromonte, among others.
He then signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and played for five years as an All-Star defensive back as well as a punter, quarterback and wide receiver.
In 2006, Baylor University hung banners around Floyd Casey Stadium honoring their best football players, including Larry Isbell.