In my own words: Will Shaffer
Every true freshman feels the pressure to prove themselves from the minute they arrive on campus, but living up to high expectations should be nothing new for Will Shaffer. The former Scottsdale Saguaro linebacker and three-time state champion who at times also doubled as a running back for the Sabercats is also no stranger to maximizing every snap he has earned on the gridiron. As a senior, Shaffer tallied 77 tackles, 17 of them for a loss to go along with 11 rushing touchdowns (13 total) averaging 8.7 yards a carry.
Growing up a Sun Devil fan, linebacker Will Shaffer’s dream of playing for Arizona State has come true. Ironically, one of the best games in his prep career took place in Sun Devil Stadium during a loss to Chandler High School in the open division state championship game, where Shaffer scored three touchdowns.
As the ASU incoming freshman takes us through his football journey, it’s easy to see that he’s no stranger to handling pressure and his life experiences could adequately prepare for his next stage as a newcomer on ASU’s 2020 squad.
“I was about five-years-old when I played flag. I played center on my team. In Flag football, the center is allowed to run routes. So, I just remember thinking that it was so odd how you could snap the ball and be able to run a route as well. I just loved it. I always thought it was a super fun sport, and I just stuck with it. My first-ever touchdown, it was like a five-and-out route. It was a long touchdown too because that’s when we used to play on an 80-yard field instead of 100. I remember it was like 60 yards, and my parents were going crazy and stuff.
“I was born in Mesa, and I went to middle school in Madison Park which in central Phoenix and to Aprende Middle School in Chandler. I went to Scottsdale Saguaro in my ninth-grade year. I remember I was in eighth grade, and I went to a couple of their playoff games when they were playing Queen Creek and Apollo. I remember going to the championship game when they played at U of A against Marcos De Niza which is a school that’s really close to me. It was just crazy seeing how many people Saguaro put out on D-I football scholarships, and I just remember talking it over with my parents. We were seeing how I’ll be able to get to school because it’s not a close drive. But we just stuck with it, and I ended up deciding to go to Saguaro. It was mostly football based.
“The first year at Saguaro was a shock. It was mostly just different because I didn’t go to middle school with a lot of those kids who went to school with each other since sixth grade. So, it was mostly just meeting new kids, being in a new area. I’d never really been to Scottsdale before on a regular basis, so being in that area was very different, and now, I was adapting to playing high school football and then just making sure I was about my business. It was kind of a culture shock as well.
“I started about seven or eight games in my sophomore year. I played tight end, and I played on all the special teams. I remember I asked my coach during the first week of the season, ‘so who’s JV got this week? He’s like ‘JV? You’re not playing JV.’ I thought that was really cool that I was able to play varsity, especially like that young. That’s when I first knew I had a chance to get a college football scholarship, even though I didn’t end up getting my first offer until after the season of my junior year. But I thought that’s when it’s going to start ramping up, but I didn’t really get much of those big-time looks like that young.
“I won the state championship in my sophomore and junior year. There’s definitely a lot of pressure playing for that school. I remember my freshman year; I got the opportunity to get pulled up to varsity in the second half of the season. I didn’t really play much, but I got to witness that 2016 class and I got a ring from that championship. But I was actually playing in the championship games my sophomore and junior year, and at Saguaro, it’s mostly expected for us to win a championship. It’s not ‘oh, you guys going to the playoffs’ or ‘you guys going to the championship.’ It’s more like ‘you guys have to win it because you guys are Saguaro High School. That’s what y’all do.’ It was more pressure actually this (senior) year than it was my sophomore or junior year.
“I think about the championship game against Chandler all the time…what we could have done differently or what I could have done myself differently on certain plays? But when it’s over, it’s over, then you got to do what you got to do within that time allotted, and you can’t really reflect on it too much. I mostly think about it as far as my game personally. I got to show out in ASU’s stadium in front of everybody. I know that was a matchup everybody wanted to see, and it wasn’t the outcome that we wanted, but at the end of the day, it’s football, and just that’s how things pan out.
“The first time I played both ways was my junior year, and only I played it for the first five games of the season, and then we got a transfer come in. I remember the conditioning is different. Just go from one side of the ball to playing both sides. I remember my coach always pushing me during summer lifting, summer workouts. He’s said, “you got to be able to go the whole four quarters like this like even when you’re tired.’ Going into senior year, I was playing the whole season playing both ways. On a big-time program, you expect to play one side of the ball. But getting the opportunity to play both sides, it was more fun for me from a personal standpoint, because those are my highlights. You get more opportunities to make plays going from linebacker to running back. So, I enjoyed it a lot. You have yet to have that killer mindset, that ‘if I don’t get it this play, I’ve got to get on the next play.’ And then you get a stop. Oh, now I’m back on offense. Now I can make a big play on the offensive side of the ball. You have to make the most out of it and enjoy it as much as you can. I really loved playing both ways at Saguaro.
“I grew up an ASU fan. I remember being eight or nine years old going to the games. I used to hate the intro and Sparky stepping on the bus and the fireworks because it was so loud (laughs). But it was cool to be there. I remember one of my two favorite players watching was Mike Jones, the wide receiver, and Troy Nolan, the safety. It was just exciting being able to witness how that atmosphere was.
“ASU was close to one of my last offers but that was the one I was really waiting on. I used to go to the ASU camps. I remember the first one I went to was my sophomore year. I used to get recruited by John Simon when he was the running backs coach, but coach Todd Graham wasn’t a big fan of me saying I was too short to be a running back. So that’s when I was kind of leaning away from ASU, but then coach Herm (Edwards) came in, and then they started to pick it back up and started to heavily recruit me again as a linebacker. This was after my junior year, where I played linebacker and tight end for the first five games of the season, and then after that, I just played tight end on offense. I just remember I had 52 tackles in the first five games so I think if I had played the whole season, I would have had well over 100 in our 14-game season.
“AP (Antonio Pierce) was the coach recruiting right before I got offered. Our relationship definitely got closer from the time that I committed to now. We often text, and then being in those (Zoom) meetings with other linebackers is almost being surreal how I’m almost being a collegiate athlete. We’ve become very close. I remember him saying that he’s going to come to see me in practice, and then the offer I got was more like a surprise. It was exciting. He mostly liked my versatility and the way I can play both inside and outside and make plays. Plus, being a running back, I know their tendencies, and that helps (as a linebacker). I think about that all the time…taking those attributes and skills from the offense to put them on defense and then having that nose for the football. It’s definitely going to help a lot in college.
“This (ASU) team looks real tight-knit on both sides of the ball, especially on defense. They fly to the ball, play aggressively, and tackle well. They’re just a great football team, and you can tell that they’re well coached and that they love to play the game. So that’s what I’m really excited for to be able to get into that atmosphere and that program and be able to contribute as much as I can.
“Last January, both Arizona and Washington State me. At that time, it was mostly just them trying to sell what they can to me because I was committed but not signed yet. There was a lot of competition between the two because Washington State came to my school four times to see me, and U of A came a lot as well. They were asking me, ‘do you really want to be a blueshirt at ASU or do you want to come sign with us and be able to contribute right away?’ It was not really a lot of mind games, but at the same time, it was tough.
“At first I didn’t really have much knowledge of what a Blueshirt meant. But it’s not a bad thing, and I’m not talking down on it. Because I didn’t sign an NLI; I could have gone shopping to see who wanted to sign me. Then I had New Mexico offering me, Utah came to my school and said the only way they would offer me is if I committed on the spot or did an official visit and then committed. So, I’m thinking ‘I was trying to get (an) offer from you guys last spring when y’all came to our practice …y’all didn’t pay no mind to me at all.’ I wasn’t feeling disappointment about the Blueshirt but at the same time, I was looking into seeing who really wanted me the most.
“So then I went on campus to ASU, and I spoke with AP, and he was saying, ‘all these schools going to come after you now that they know that you’re not signed but just know that we’re staying true to our word and that you will have the scholarship in August. … You’re no different from any other true freshman. So just know that we are on the same page that we still want you here. It’s not that like, oh, just because they’re recruiting you, we don’t want you anymore.’ So, AP really made it feel assured that Arizona State would be a home for me.
“I did go on an official visit to U of A. I’ve been down to Tucson before on a recruiting trip, to their junior day in January of my junior year, and they didn’t offer me or anything. So, it was weird going down there again this past January. They were giving the recruiting pitch. ‘You come here. You’re going to have to play freshman year.’ But they just came off a 4-8 season and it was just too many what-ifs. Getting recruited there, you definitely get to see another side of the rivalry for sure.
“I was working out at the house with my father when we first got quarantined, and around May, when things started to open up, I’ve been going to a trainer close to my house. I try to get in six days a week, 2.5 hours a day, as much as I can. I’m getting stronger, and I’ve been keeping my cardio up. Ready to work out with the team. I’m about in-between 220-225 lbs. right now. I’ve been staying as close to 220 as I can. When we start working out (at ASU) you’re going to lose some of that weight with as much activity as we’ll be doing. As long as I can maintain that weight range, I’ll be fine.
“I’ve enrolled in summer school, and I’ve been on the Zoom calls with AP and the players. It tests your ability to learn a lot because you do not see it
in-person. You’ve got to really pay attention. All the freshmen are supposed to get to campus on the 24th (of June) and be in a
14-day quarantine. After that, that’s when we’re able to work out full throttle.
“My freshman year, I just got to go in and work as hard as I can. Then wherever they put me in, I need to be able to contribute to the team so that I won’t redshirt. I have to come in, be ready, and not be afraid to compete. So that’s what I’m most looking forward to.
“I’m really excited. I think it’ll be a lot of fun being back in Sun Devil Stadium on Saturdays. I have goosebumps thinking about it.”
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Jesse Morrison contributed to this article
