Second chances don’t always come along, but for those who get them, that new opportunity is one that cannot be wasted.
In college football, second chances can come about in a multitude of ways: taking over for an injured player, overcoming an injury, working up the totem pole from walk-on to starter and more.
Those chances, in recent years, have most commonly come from the transfer portal, something that has exploded because of immediate eligibility and new rules surrounding name, image and likeness. Players can now make money from NIL deals on top of their existing scholarships.
However, some players simply transfer in search of better situations for their playing career. For two players at Baltimore-area schools, that was exactly the case. Towson redshirt senior defensive lineman Vinnie Shaffer and Morgan State senior cornerback Jae’Veyon Morton made the most of those second chances.
“Win, lose or draw the game that I have, I hope to bring my best so we can win the game and pull out a team victory,” Shaffer said. “… I walked on here in 2018, so for me, it’s been establishing and developing over my career.”
Shaffer spent the 2017 season at Division II Saint Anselm (Manchester, N.H.), recording 11 tackles, a sack and a forced fumble in seven games. The Archbishop Curley graduate and Middle River native wasn’t guaranteed a spot with Towson when he transferred back home, but he worked tirelessly to put himself in a position to have a chance to succeed.
From grueling practices to long sessions in the weight room, Shaffer paid his dues and waited his turn, and in doing so, he carved out a spot for himself to play and eventually start in 2021. He didn’t just start, he dominated. The 5-foot-11, 305-pound lineman paced the Tigers with four sacks and finished second on the team with five tackles for loss.
Shaffer’s performance in 2021 was plenty good enough for him to earn the distinction of captain during his fourth and final season with the program.
“From where I was to being a starter, to see how far I’ve come after taking a shot here,” Shaffer said in looking back at his career. “Ultimately, it’s not something that I didn’t believe in. It wasn’t if, it was when it was going to happen. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to be able to be a captain here from a walk-on.”
Shaffer continued his success in 2022, recording three sacks, five tackles for loss and 36 total tackles in 11 starts for Towson. The Tigers finished the season on a four-game winning streak to push their record to 6-5, but the school is in process of finding a replacement for Rob Ambrose, who is not returning as head coach.
A similar story can be found at Morgan State. A consensus three-star recruit out of Detroit, Morton originally landed at Iowa State in 2018 but transferred from the Big 12 power to Morgan ahead of the 2021 season. Since transferring, Morton has received two straight All-MEAC selections, including first-team All-MEAC honors in 2022.
The 5-foot-9, 180-pound cornerback had 10 pass breakups and three interceptions, including one pick-six, in 2022.
“From last year to this year, it’s been a big difference playing at Morgan State,” Morton said. “I was very confident from when we won our last game last year through this year. It helped me have a better season.”
Morton never got his opportunity with Iowa State but found an opportunity to rediscover himself with the Bears. Since that point, he has recorded 96 total tackles, four interceptions and 17 pass breakups, the latter two marks being among the best marks in the conference.
The change of scenery was needed. Transferring to a smaller program ended up being beneficial. Morton found his niche at Morgan State, which went 4-7 under first-year coach Damon Wilson in 2022. Morton has one season of eligibility remaining.
“There’s not much difference from the skill positions, but the D-line and O-line, it’s very different,” Morton said of moving from the Big 12 to the MEAC. “Seeing myself around, seeing the difference from Iowa State and Morgan State, it’s the same, but we really have to put our work in for what we have to do.”
Both Morton and Shaffer have grinded through numerous seasons of sitting on the bench, redshirting and not getting playing time. While that might have been discouraging at the start, they kept at it and reaped the rewards of that hard work on the field this season.
That means a lot to Shaffer, the former walk-on.
“I hope it showed the younger guys on the team that are walk-ons that it doesn’t matter, walk-on or not, that you can still come and be a leader and a starter,” he said.
Photo Credits: ENP Photography and Chris Thompkins