Courtesy of Dean Shaffer

In a long list of 118 players on the Yale Football roster, one linebacker stands out for his grimacing glare and furrowed brow; the picture almost reminiscent of a mugshot. 

This is Team 151’s Captain, Dean Shaffer ’25.

20 years ago, a little boy stood in front of the television, watching Donovan McNabb secure the Eagles a spot in the NFL playoffs. He ran around as cheers echoed throughout the warm family house. His mom prayed he didn’t break the nice china.

Dean first began his athletic career at four years old, when his mom enrolled him in soccer. He began to tackle kids on the field for the ball. His parents realized his skills and size might be better suited elsewhere.

“It’s time to play football,” he remembers his mom telling him.

The sport was love at first sight, Dean recalls. What began as a way to bond with his dad soon became an all-consuming passion.

While other kids’ parents stood on the sidelines, screaming at the coaches and keeping a close eye on their kids, Dean’s father focused instead on keeping the video camera charged and focused, documenting every play.

“My dad introduced me to [football], but never forced it on me, coached me, nothing. I was always the one who went to him saying ‘Hey, I want to do more.’ I am very thankful for that. He did a great job at letting me do my own thing with football,” he told the News.

His home of Smithtown, New York, is located right in the middle of Long Island and, as Dean admits, is not necessarily known for its stellar football. Smithtown High School’s football roster had approximately 40 players. Dean played two positions — running back and linebacker — and excelled at both. His sophomore year, he focused on college recruiting.

After attending a few camps, the father of one of Dean’s teammates gave him advice that would change his future: ditch the running and stick with linebacker. Immediately, Division 1 schools started calling.

An Ivy League opportunity is rare in Smithtown. While Dean could’ve stayed close to home, he heeded his parents’ advice: “Never sacrifice your education just to play football.”

Thus, Dean turned the ringer on for calls from the Ivy League, which he described as “the best of both worlds: Division 1 football and the best schools in the country.”

Coming up on his commitment decision, the University of Pennsylvania seemed like an obvious choice. Both of Dean’s parents had been born and raised in Pennsylvania, and encouraged Dean to attend Penn. Dean decided to be a Quaker after they brought his family on an official visit. 

All that was left were the courtesy calls to the other Ivy League schools, and then Dean could officially tell the coaches at Penn that he was ready to bleed Red and Blue. The call to Yale’s defensive coordinator, Coach Sean McGowan, made him reconsider.

When Dean called and said he was going to commit to Penn, McGowan said: “No, you’re not. Come to campus tomorrow. Don’t call Penn after this phone call. Give us another chance,” Dean recalled.

The visit changed Dean’s mind immediately. Everything about Yale exceeded expectations — the food, the architecture, the people. Ignore proximity to home; Yale was as much destined for Dean as he was for Yale. He committed to being a Bulldog. 

Due to COVID-19, Dean took the spring 2021 semester off.

“It was hard, I mean just being a freshman in college is hard. You’re such a young, immature person. You change so much in your time at college, especially at Yale. Adjusting to football was hard—the speed of the game, the talent — and school, too.”

The real work began in fall 2021 when Ivy League sports resumed.

Dean says practices led by Head Coach Tony Reno are “intentionally difficult,” meant to maintain intensity so that when games roll around, they feel slow and easy.

Football practices, he said, are broken up into periods: the first is skill-based, working positional skills. This is followed by group teaching, where the defense works with the defense and the offense works with the offense. Lastly, there are competitive periods, where the offense and defense play one another. 

Now that the team is in season, scout teams made up of younger players looking to help the team, will mimic opponents’ plays so that the offense and defense can practice combating them. This is relatively standard with most football programs, but Dean says, “the biggest thing that makes us different is how intense practices are. How difficult, how physical. I think a lot of schools make practice easy so guys can feel good for the game, but I think we do it the other way around so games feel easier.”

On Nov. 19, 2023, Dean was elected captain by his teammates.

Upon this announcement, Reno told Yale Athletics that “there isn’t a better person than Dean to bring Team 151 together. I’m excited to see his growth as captain.”

Dean said he never sought out this captaincy, though it is “the best honor of [his] life.” Leadership, ever since he was young, has come naturally to him.

This is something his teammates recognize. Quarterback Grant Jordan ’25 wrote to the News about Dean’s impact on the team and on him, stating that he is grateful to God for “intertwining their fates.”

Grant and Dean were randomly assigned as roommates their first year.

“As a teammate, he’s dealt with injury, adversity, and all things necessary to shape himself into a tremendous leader and player on the field,” Grant wrote to the News. “More importantly, Dean’s leadership off the field is what makes him special … I can’t imagine Yale Football without Dean Shaffer as I think he embodies the definition of what it means to be a Yale Football Player.”

Grant described Dean as a “foxhole” guy—someone who will be there no matter the circumstance. 

Defensive lineman Mitchell Tyler ’25 echoed Grant’s words.

“[Dean] loves being a leader,” Mitchell wrote to the News. “He loves relationships and believes that a group that is tight-knit plays best together. I haven’t been around anyone who leads that way … I don’t know if we would be as tight-knit as a group without him.”

Halfway through Dean’s final year playing football, he says he has “no individual goals. Zero.” 

Instead, he sees himself as someone who can guide the team toward “the vision,” an overarching goal emphasizing “the hay in the barn,” as Dean puts it — the work, not the result.

“For the team, we don’t think about outcomes,” he said. “I could say 10–0 and a championship, but that’s really not the goal. The goal is: tomorrow, can we have the best practice, the best lift, the best meetings that we’ve ever had? And just do that every day. If today was the only day we ever had, how great can we make it? My goal for the team is to continue to attack things day by day, moment by moment.”

Every day, Dean and his senior class mirror a philosophy that Reno has espoused since the beginning of his time at Yale: “Plant seeds to trees you’ll never see grow.”

To Dean, when the seniors show up, planting seeds means exuding positivity and bringing energy to practices. It matters to Dean that the younger players on the team understand their importance and feel valued.

“I have no doubt that the program will flourish as long as Reno’s at the helm,” he said. “In terms of my legacy, I just hope people are proud that we’re on the same team.”

When asked who his success should be credited to, Dean wasn’t sure he deserved to be credited for success yet. He said he and his team still have a lot to prove. However, he emphasized, if anyone deserved credit for his success, it was his teammates.

“I would trade all the wins, all the trophies, if that meant having the relationships I do now,” he said. “I love football, but the relationships are the greatest part of the sport … The dudes that are going to be standing at my wedding are on this football team, the same dudes at my funeral. That’s just how it’s going to be.”

Dean has seven more games left in his collegiate career.