The Indianapolis Colts have announced Isabel Diaz and Lauren James as the Harriet P. Irsay Fellows for the 2024 season.
Diaz, the inaugural Harriet P. Irsay Fellow last year, will return in the same capacity assisting with special teams. She participated in the Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship with the Washington Commanders during the 2022 offseason and training camp. Diaz assisted primarily with the defensive backs. She has also participated in the NFL Women's Forum multiple times at the NFL Scouting Combine. Prior to the NFL, Diaz served in a variety of roles at Oklahoma State. She was an undergraduate assistant for the defense from 2021-23, where she assisted with the scout team, created practice scripts, helped with game planning and charted plays on game day. From 2019-21, Diaz was a videographer for the football and women's soccer programs. She filmed game days for both teams as well as practice for football. Diaz earned her bachelor's degree in sport & coaching science with a minor in sport management from Oklahoma State.
James will assist in analytics in football operations. For the last two years, she served as a graduate assistant at Georgia Tech with the women's basketball team. James assisted in operations and supported the coaching staff with statistical reports and analysis. She previously interned with the Indiana Pacers (summer 2022) and San Francisco 49ers (2021 training camp) in analytics roles. James was an athletic department assistant at her alma mater, Taylor University, from 2021-22. She was a youth development instructor with USA Basketball in 2019. James played basketball at Taylor from 2017-21. She earned her master's degree in analytics from Georgia Tech in 2024. James double majored at Taylor and earned bachelor's degrees in mathematics and computer science with a minor in data science. She participated in the 2024 NFL Big Data Bowl and garnered honorable mention recognition.
The Harriet P. Irsay Fellowship for Women in Football Program affords a fellowship in a football operations department or coaching in which women have been historically underrepresented. The fellowship is named in honor of Harriet P. Irsay, the late mother of Colts Owner & CEO Jim Irsay. The second-year program provides the Colts with access to high potential candidates to contribute to their football operation while also fostering and expanding upon the club's diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The goal is to create a pipeline of qualified employees that have successfully completed this program to be considered for future more senior positions with Indianapolis and other NFL clubs.
Qualified candidates were evaluated and interviewed by a selection committee composed of the Irsay family, General Manager Chris Ballard, Head Coach Shane Steichen and other members of the Colts coaching staff and football operations team.
