Follw the Leaders

Chapter 4

Sweat drips slowly down the red face of senior wide receiver Bryce Shorten. It’s not yet 8 a.m. and the day is starting to heat up on the turf field at Jaguar Stadium. 

Shorten got some good reps in and now gives way to a younger receiver. While the quarterback barks out the play call, Shorten gives his young counterpart advice on where to line up correctly. It’s a small correction but even the smallest details matter. Throughout the rest of practice Shorten continues to act as a player/coach offering his experience and knowledge to his fellow wideout. 

Shorten was one of 16 players elected by their peers to the team’s leadership council. He’s honored to be part of the council and hopes to provide the type of leadership and mentorship that he received as a young player. 

“I know a lot of the younger guys look up to the older guys. I know I did when I was freshman,” Shorten said. “Guys like Mikey Bergeron, Hayes Miller and Preston Oliver were all a huge help to me.”

Shorten says he looks forward to the role even though he has work to do.

“Leading is leading by example but also vocally,” he said. “Vocally is something I need to step up a bit. I want to make sure the guys behind me know their role and that everything they do is important.”

Bryce Shorten is one of 16 players elected to this year’s Jaguar Leadership Council. Shorten has shown himself to be a nice leader on the field this summer helping younger wideouts learn the position.

Being vocal is not a problem for senior defensive lineman Hayden Heller. The dude can crank up the decibels when he needs to. During weights, on the field, in the locker room, Heller lets the encouragement fly with his voice.

“When I’m feeling the energy for my teammates it just gets me going,” he said. “It makes me lift better so I try and reciprocate that to everybody else.”

Heller — arguably the team’s best defensive lineman — is coming off a serious ACL injury that saw him miss the playoffs last year. While he couldn’t help his team, physically, on the field, he was a presence on the sidelines offering tips and encouragement to his teammates.

“(The injury) was definitely a humbling experience but it made me become a better teammate and a better leader having to do things that I normally don’t do,” he said. “I was able to help out and let the young guys know what to do and what not to do.”

Josh Garcia knows grunt work. As a sophomore he labored away on the scout team. The scout team runs the opposition's defense against the first team offense. Basically, each week he was getting beat up by the best offensive lineman Mill Valley had to offer and then coming back for more over and over again. 

“It’s definitely a grind every day showing up and knowing you’re not going to play on Friday,” he said. “But you’ve got to give your best effort to the guys that are playing on Friday for the team to have good results.”

His job was to give the Jaguar’s offense an honest look. His reward was to get pounded on day after day after day for a full season.

In the end he was recognized for his hard work. Garcia was named defensive scout team player of the week three times and was also defensive scout team player of the year. The kid knows how to ball.

Those qualities got him elected to the team’s leadership council. It’s something that he’s humbled by but also proud of. 

“It’s really an honor to be voted by my peers to the leadership council,” he said. “It’s just another way for me to step up as a leader. I want people to know they can come to me if they need something. I’m really honored to be on it.” 

Garcia said he learned a lot about being a leader from 2025 graduate El-Roi Hasabu who led just as much off the field as he did on the field.

“El-Roi showed how to be a nice person — not just a football player, but a good person,” Garcia said.

Garcia said he hopes to model those same qualities that Hasabu did for his younger teammates. 

“I want to be a leader both on the field and off the field by showing what to do and making good decisions when everyone is watching you,” he said.

Landon Stockwell embraces the chance to be a leader on this year’s Jaguar team. The senior defensive back has put in the hard work on the field and in the weight room. He’s also stepped up as a vocal leader.

Landon Stockwell knows what it means to be on the leadership council. For three years he’s seen the examples of those elected and how they lead. Some leaders lead by example. Others are more vocal. Stockwell believes he can be both. 

“Sometimes people are scared to have conversations that are truthful but I like those conversations,” he said. “I’m not scared to go up to somebody and tell them that they need to do better or they’re not giving enough effort.”

Stockwell embraces the leadership role because he knows this team has the ability to do great things.

“I hope I can uplift this team and really push everyone to be their best selves,” he said. “If everyone can be their best selves they can dominate and we can be a great team as a whole.”