By Brittany Bowyer
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TEMPE — Saguaro, in years past, was known for the high-caliber of football talent they’d continuously produce. Year after year, the Sabercats were State Championship contenders under Head Coach Jason Mohns and his staff.

With 13 state championships from 2006-2023, the Sabercats had some noteworthy players come through their program. One of those players is former standout linebacker Will Shaffer, who graduated from the program in 2020.

Shaffer’s collegiate career started at Arizona State, where he spent his first three seasons. He then briefly transferred to Utah State before finishing out the rest of his playing career at Abilene Christian in Texas. After finishing up his collegiate career, Shaffer returned to the Valley, where he’s found a new home with the McClintock Chargers as a member of their coaching staff.

“When [Shaffer] got done with his playing career, God willing he’s still not done, but while he’s kind of in this transition period he came out and actually spoke to our team,” McClintock Head Coach Nick Offenberger said. “I kind of just kiddingly threw it out there like, ‘Hey man, if you’re gonna be around for a little bit, we’d love to have you out here and helping out.’ One conversation turned into another, and the next thing I know he was out here helping us. It’s been amazing.”

Shaffer and Offenberger first met when Offenberger joined the staff at Saguaro during Shaffer’s sophomore year. Although Offenberger worked mostly with the offensive line, he and Shaffer were still able to develop a relationship, as Shaffer did play some tight end and h-back his sophomore season.

When the two met up again nearly six years later to start coaching together, it was almost surreal that it happened to be at McClintock. Shaffer’s family has deep ties to the Charger community, as his mother, aunt, Godmother and his younger sister all graduated from McClintock. Currently, his younger brother Langston Shaffer is a cornerback on the McClintock football team. For Shaffer to be able to come back and coach alongside his younger brother while he plays is something special.

“I didn’t get to see any of his first two years in high school games, as I was in school in Texas,” Shaffer said. “So now, being able to be with him every day, we ride to practice together. We lift and we talk. Talk after games, ask him how he’s feeling. Anything he needs to get better at, we watch film together. So I definitely want to be able to be on this ride with him throughout the rest of his high school career.”

Although Shaffer is young and inexperienced as a coach, he’s working hard each day to learn and become better at his craft. Offenberger has Shaffer fully immersed in the program, helping out with not only the linebackers, but as the assistant special teams coach and as the assistant strength and conditioning coach. According to Offenberger, they’re working to find the right opportunity for Shaffer to get him on campus with the kids full-time.

“We actually had an opportunity come up that we offered to him, it just wasn’t a good fit at the time for him.,” Coach Offenberger said. “I think his number one priority is kind of navigating what his continuation of playing is. He’s done a couple combines, there’s an opportunity for him to maybe join a UFL roster in the spring. So I think my priority for him, and his priority right now, is again to try to continue his playing career. If and when he decides that his time is done and it is time for him to hang them up, yes, one-thousand percent, it will be of the utmost certainty for us to find him a full-time role on campus so he can be around our program as much as possible.”

A big part of Shaffer finding success as a coach has been his ability to relate to the players.

“He’s one of the younger guys on our staff so he’s almost like a big brother figure, and he’s able to pour into the full student-athlete, not just them as a football player, but them as a young man,” Offenberger said.

Offenberger provided a great example of Shaffer pouring into the younger players just recently.

“Our kids, we were at the freshman game and all of our varsity kids were standing on the sidelines, and Will’s out there just talking to them about life and just joking around with them and stuff,” Offenberger said. “So again, he’s a hell of a football player, hell of a man, but his ability to relate and just be a human being to our kids and be someone they can count on and share stuff with has been awesome.”

Offenberger also said that Shaffer has a unique gift of being able to resonate with the kids.

“I think the biggest thing is he’s able to teach it,” Offenberger said. “Right? Just because you played it doesn’t always mean you’re a great teacher. So I think he’s really able to break stuff down and show our kids stuff in a way they’re able to pick it up, understand it and then go apply it ... He’s very gifted in that sense of this being his first year coaching stuff, our kids are able to understand what he’s saying. He’s able to teach it in a way that again, they can understand it, they can go apply it and then just the passion that he does it with. I get goosebumps talking about it.”

Shaffer has a unique coaching style that’s all his own, comprised of elements he’s taken from each one of his coaches throughout the years.

“I tried to take all those bits and pieces of knowledge and information from each coach that I’ve had that opportunity to interact with and get coached by and just implement that to the kids now,” Shaffer said.

Shaffer said coaching is way more stressful than playing, because as a player, you at least feel like you have the ability to make a difference.

“When you’re a player, you actually feel like you have a chance to maybe manipulate the game or maybe make a play that might be a big play for the team,” Shaffer said. “But as a coach, you know, you’re putting all your trust and faith in the players that you’ve been coaching up, and hopefully you’ve been doing a good job of getting them prepared.”

His philosophy is kids can’t be expected to go out and perform at a high level on Friday night if there’s no attention to detail during the week leading up to the game.

“The kids are only as good as their coaches,” Shaffer said. “We can’t expect the kids to be Superman on Friday if he wasn’t learning that the nuance is the details Monday through Thursday. So we just try to do everything we can, little by little, each period at a time holding on to the details, making sure that the kids are learning, as well. Putting them in the best position to make plays and be successful not only for themselves but for the team.”

Shaffer hopes when the kids he’s coached this season reflect back on this season years down the line, they remember him as a coach who cared. He says oftentimes, we learn things but we don’t necessarily retain the lessons because we don’t have a personal connection to the teacher. He says among the staff at McClintock, it’s something they’re trying to change.

“We’re trying to have a personal relationship with the kids,” Shaffer said. “You know they could talk to us about anything that may be going on in their life, we’re more than football coaches. We’re life coaches. We’re teachers. We’re peers. We’re companions. Whatever they may need in order to be successful.”

He says while he gets fired up at times, he always has the kids’ best intentions at heart.

“I want them to understand that as a coach, I have their best intentions in life, football, school, whatever their path may lead down,” Shaffer said. "So I hope they remember me as somebody who had an impact on their lives. Somebody who helped them change as a player, as a man, student, future husband, father. Just making sure they understand we’re coaching them for life, not just football.”

Brittany Bowyer is a Report for America corps member, covering sports for Independent Newsmedia in Arizona. Report for America places talented journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-covered issues and regions.