Foothill Teacher And Coach Randy Isaacs Dies

PLEASANTON, CA — The Pleasanton community is mourning the loss of Randy Isaacs, a PE and math teacher at Foothill High School who used to coach varsity basketball. He was 59.

“Mr. Isaacs has been teaching at Foothill since 1993. We are extremely saddened by the loss and are working to support his family and colleagues who have known Mr. Isaacs for a long time,” Foothill Principal Sebastian Bull wrote in an email. Isaacs died of a heart attack while "doing what he loved, hiking on a beautiful trail" a family member told Patch.

The school’s Crisis Response Team arranged for administration and counselors to visit Isaacs’ classes Wednesday to support his students. The school will also have additional counseling support and social workers available if needed.

Dennis Miller, a sports writer for Pleasanton Weekly, wrote an emotional tribute to his friend, who was known by many simply as “Big Red.”

“Randy was part of the fabric of Pleasanton,” Miller wrote. “Those of us who grew up in Pleasanton and were fortunate to stay and work in the town helped mold what has made Pleasanton such a special place for all of us.”

Miller remembered Isaacs as funny and caring. Miller posted on Facebook about Isaacs’ passing, which garnered a large, emotional response, including from Coach Mike Furlong, who wrote, “Forget about basketball – he was a good man.”