Cecil Shorts III called from the bus. The star receiver from Collinwood was making his last 400-some-mile trip from Mount Union's campus in Alliance to Salem, Va. That's where the Purple Raiders will face Wisconsin-Whitewater for the Division III national title in the Stagg Bowl on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. The team will stop at the Tamarack rest stop...
Cecil Shorts III called from the bus. The star receiver from Collinwood was making his last 400-some-mile trip from Mount Union's campus in Alliance to Salem, Va. That's where the Purple Raiders will face Wisconsin-Whitewater for the Division III national title in the Stagg Bowl on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
The team will stop at the Tamarack rest stop on the West Virginia Turnpike for sandwiches, then it's back to the bus. It's a Purple Raiders tradition -- one that Shorts will always remember.
"I keep thinking about how this has gone by so fast," said Shorts, who was named to the Associated Press Little All-America First Team on Friday as an all-purpose player. "I have one game and four quarters left. I want them to count. When you go to Mount Union, you do that with the intention of winning national championships."
Notice that Shorts said championships . . . as in more than one.
Shorts came to Mount as a quarterback and soon discovered that the school had lots of quarterbacks. There were quarterbacks who already had won national titles, quarterbacks who were destined to win titles in the future.
"At the time, I didn't see it as a good thing for me," he said. "This was the first time that I was on a team that really didn't need me. They won lots of titles before I got there . . . and their view was they'd win more . . . no matter if you played."
Shorts called it humbling, much the same way it was a bit deflating when Division I programs passed over a chance to recruit him after being a star for his father, Cecil Shorts Jr., at Collinwood.
"A lot of my friends never heard of Mount Union," said Shorts.
But his father had, and he liked the disciplined-and-successful program run by Larry Kehres.
"Mr. Kehres was very straight with us," said Shorts Jr. "We felt let down because it seemed at least three schools, some of them in the [Mid-American Conference], were going to offer us a scholarship. But when they didn't, I liked how Mount Union is pure football. They promised Cecil a degree and a [championship] ring if he stayed with the program."
Shorts Jr. believes: "Mr. Kehres was sincere about Cecil being a quarterback. He even was a backup his first year, but they had Greg Micheli, and they wanted to get Cecil on the field."
Micheli was the Division III Player of the Year in 2008. He completed 74 percent of his passes for his career, with 79 touchdowns compared to only nine interceptions. It made no sense for Shorts to sit, especially when the Mount coaches believed he could be an impact receiver.
Shorts didn't like the idea. He also had no clue that it was exactly what he needed to become a pro prospect.
"Now, I can see it was the best thing that happened to me," he said.
Shorts Jr. said his son has been invited to the East/West Shrine Bowl and the Senior Bowl. There is an excellent chance that he also will take part in the NFL Combine, where college prospects are evaluated by the pros.
"I know that happened because I changed positions, and also because of Pierre," Shorts said.
He meant Pierre Gar on, the Mount Union receiver who became a sixth-round pick by Indianapolis in 2008 and is the second-leading receiver for the Colts this season.
"I know that paved the way for me," said Shorts, who has broken nearly all of Gar on's school records.
Kehres raves about how Shorts has evolved into a team leader, "He has real charisma, people on campus are attracted to him."
This season, Shorts has 17 touchdown catches in 11 games. He also has run back two kicks and a punt for touchdowns. His 62 career touchdown receptions are No. 2 all-time in Division III.
The Mount coaches believe Shorts' quarterback experience has helped him read defenses and become a very astute receiver. He doesn't simply sprint past safeties, he runs precise routes.
"I wouldn't be surprised if Cecil is drafted," said Kehres. "We have scouts at most of our practices and games. They have been checking and cross-checking him. They have talked to me about Cecil's family -- and he has a great one. He is an outstanding young man."
For now, Shorts is thinking about one more game, one more chance to win a championship ring. For the sixth year in a row, Mount Union is facing Wisconsin-Whitewater in the final. The Purple Raiders lost in 2007 and 2009, winning in 2005, 2006 and 2008.
This is Shorts' fifth season with the program; he redshirted a year because of an ankle injury.
"Mount helped me grow as a man and a football player," said Shorts. "I was 155 pounds when I came here, and now I'm 195. I've been a part of championship teams, and I've learned how you need to work 365 days a year toward getting back to a championship game. It teaches you a lot about discipline and being unselfish. Those things you take with you for the rest of your life."