Coaches Knew Running Back Was Going to Be Special
Lee County High School running back Ousmane Kromah, a senior, has enjoyed a dominant career as a running and receiving threat for the Trojans, which is why it’s hard to imagine that he was initially chosen to be a defensive player entering his freshman season at Lee County.
Where It All Started: The Middle School Years
According to Lee County Middle School East head football coach Russ Hayes, when Kromah first came out for the team, he was actually a sixth-grader.
Kromah’s two older brothers both played at Lee County prior to Kromah making a name for himself. One of his brothers, Omar, approached Hayes and asked the coach if his younger brother could come try out for the eighth-grade team.
“Omar was a solid player for us, and he said he had a younger brother who wanted to come out for the team,” Hayes said.
The coach wasn’t sure if it was a good idea to allow a sixth-grader to come try out for a team full of eighth-graders, but Hayes liked Omar and decided to do it as a favor to his player.
“We had never had a sixth-grader play for our eighth-grade team, but I thought, ‘He’ll come out, and we’ll let him in for a play or two,’ and that would be it.”
You are probably thinking this is when Kromah just blew everyone away with his amazing skill and speed, right?
Uh, not exactly.
“Ousmane really didn’t impress me at first, to be honest,” Hayes said.
In fact, Kromah was put with the defense just because Hayes didn’t think he’d be able to contribute a lot on offense.
“Ousmane really made more of an impact on defense, so we played him at safety,” Hayes said. “I remember he made a big hit on defense, and that got my attention.”
Then late in the middle school season, Lee County East was playing cross-town rival Lee County West. According to Hayes, Lee County East got a big lead, and that’s when he felt a tug on his arm.
“It was Ousmane,” Hayes said. “He asked me to let him run the ball.”
The problem? Kromah had not played or practiced with the offense, so he had no idea what the play was. Hayes reverted to the old sandlot style of football.
“I told Ousmane, ‘OK, you can run the ball. I want you to take the handoff from the QB and run to the right behind the right tackle,’” Hayes said. “We were at our own 40-yard line, and there was about seven minutes left to go in the game, so I thought we’d run a couple of plays and punt.”
Kromah had other thoughts.
“He took the handoff and took it 60 yards for the TD,” Hayes said.
While that was the first inkling of what the sixth-grader was capable of doing, Hayes decided that he still wanted to keep the younger Kromah on defense. Kromah actually started at safety for the eighth-grade team in their final five games of the season.
“Not only was Ousmane two years younger than the rest of the team – he was 5 foot, 7 inches tall and 130 pounds – but he was doing more than just holding his own,” Hayes said. “To be out there physically competing with eighth-graders was an incredible thing to see.”
Kromah only got stronger as he began hitting the weight room. By the time he made it to the eighth grade, he had added 5 inches of height and 50 pounds of weight to his frame. He was now 6 feet tall, weighed 185 pounds, and was noticeably stronger.
Kromah set the Lee County Middle School squat record with a squat of 370 pounds. Hayes said he could have likely done more, but due to Kromah’s height, he didn’t want him trying any more.
“That’s a long way up to lift that much weight,” Hayes said.
The record still stands as of today.
Kromah became a two-way player during his eighth-grade season, seeing time at both RB and safety. He also saw time on special teams as a kick- and punt-returner.
No matter where Kromah lined up, he dominated.
He led Lee County East to an undefeated season in 2020 and the conference championship. Due to COVID-19, Lee County East’s season was reduced to just seven games that year. Still, the team finished 7-0, and Kromah ended up with 1,239 yards rushing with 34 touchdowns.
With Kromah’s middle school season ending on a positive note, it was time for the two-way standout to head to the ninth grade and a spot on the Trojans’ high school team.
Offense or Defense?
Lee County High School head football coach Dean Fabrizio asked Hayes where he thought Kromah could best help the high school team and where they should play the rising freshman.
“I told Coach that he’s really talented on either side of the ball and he could play either running back or safety,” Hayes said what he told Fabrizio.
Fabrizio thought about it.
“He looks like he’ll make a good safety, so I think that’s where we’ll use him,” Fabrizio said to Hayes.
Fabrizio talked about that first conversation and his on-the-spot decision at the time.
“Truth is that Ousmane was such a dominant player, I thought he’d be good anywhere we decided to put him,” Fabrizio said.
But once Kromah joined the high school squad and began running the ball in practice, Fabrizio, who is in his 16th season as the Trojans’ head coach, recognized what a talent Kromah was on offense.
“We could see just how special Ousmane was with the ball in his hands,” Fabrizio said.
Kromah’s days as a defensive player were over.
And with that, Lee County had a running back who was poised to become one of the best to ever put on a Trojan uniform.
A Visit From Mike Norvell
To no one’s surprise, Kromah started as a freshman. That was the 2021 season, and he became the primary running back in Lee County’s rushing attack.
He was so impressive through the Trojans’ first three games, all victories, that Kromah attracted a VIP visit from Florida State University head football coach Mike Norvell.
Norvell came to see the standout freshman in the toughest test of Kromah’s young varsity career, a matchup against the Class 7A Lowndes Vikings. Kromah gave Norvell, and the rest of the high school football world, a glimpse of things to come from this unheard-of freshman. In the matchup versus Lwondes, Kromah rushed for 227 yards and three touchdowns on 26 carries, leading Lee County to a 24-21 victory.
Following the game, Norvell offered Kromah a scholarship to FSU.
Kromah went on to have 188 carries during his freshman season, rushing for 1,709 yards and 20 touchdowns. He also had one receiving TD and a special teams TD on a kickoff return for a score.
The following season, Kromah increased his carries to 224. His overall rushing and scoring totals went up too, with a total of 1,796 yards on the ground and 24 touchdowns for the sophomore. Kromah also became a receiving threat within the Lee County offense, catching 22 passes for 208 yards and two touchdowns, giving him 26 total touchdowns for the 2022 season.
Kromah’s junior year was the 2023 season, and he became more balanced as both a receiver and running back, with his total yards from scrimmage increasing. While his number of rushing attempts was the lowest of his season totals up to that point, he increased his receiving totals in both catches and yards.
Kromah finished the 2023 season with 182 carries for 1,783 yards and 19 touchdowns. However, he had 31 receptions with 522 yards receiving and nine touchdowns, giving him 28 TDs for his junior season.
2024 and Beyond
At the time of writing, Lee County has just wrapped up the 2024 regular season, and Kromah, now a senior, is now getting ready to lead his team into the Class 6A state playoffs. He led his team to a perfect 10-0 regular season, rushing for 1,003 yards and 13 touchdowns on 126 carries. He has 24 receptions for 467 yards and five touchdowns.
Kromah has shown his diversity as an athlete and his unselfish nature during his final high school campaign.
“Ousmane has become a devastating blocker this year, which is a quality a lot of people don’t recognize,” Fabrizio said. “That has allowed us to use Weston (Bryan, the team’s quarterback) in the running game more this year, and that’s made us a much more balanced and effective offense.”
As Kromah and his Lee County team prepare for their first-round playoff matchup, his career rushing totals stand at 4,290 yards and 53 touchdowns. His career receiving totals so far stand at 1,182 yards and 16 touchdowns. He also has one special teams touchdown from his freshman season.
Since that first official offer from FSU back in his freshman season, Kromah has continued to receive attention from other colleges. According to Fabrizio, Kromah has “over 40 FBS offers, including every SEC school.”
Fabrizio said Kromah took official visits to Auburn, FSU, Tennessee, and Georgia. Kromah committed to Georgia in early October of this year.
At the time of writing, Kromah and his teammates are preparing for the 2024 playoffs and considered to be one of the favorites to make a run at the Class 6A state title.
With a back like Kromah, you’ve got to like Lee County’s chances.
