A Fortunate Sojourn
November 26, 2016 | Football, Mike Lucas
Graduation is nearly here for Sojourn Shelton. But his teammates and coaches say they won’t forget him.
 |
||
|
BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com Senior Writer
MADISON, Wis. — There are unexplored sides to senior cornerback Sojourn Shelton, whose allegiance to Batman, the fictional superhero, has been well-documented. Mostly, he keeps it real.
"I love his smile," said Wisconsin head coach Paul Chryst. "He's a guy that I really feel fortunate to have been around for two years. "Even in that short time, those two years, I've seen a growth and a maturity in his confidence. I know that has been a big part of his journey while being here.
"I just like seeing him every day. He's got some personality. He's one of those guys when you see him, you feel better. He's a really good teammate."
Now let's hear from secondary coach Jim Leonhard.
"Sojourn has a lot of great energy and it shows up every day," Leonhard said. "He's not one of those guys that you have to talk into practicing or you have to try and get him going.
"He really loves the game of football and loves being around his teammates. So it's fun to coach him because he's wearing off on other guys and his energy is going through the whole group.
"The thing that has impressed me this season is how he had really embraced the leadership role as a senior. He has put forth an example for the younger guys to follow and they listen."
Wide receiver Jazz Peavy has gone against Shelton in countless practices over the years.
"The first thing that comes to mind is chill, calm," Peavy said. "He's a really chill and calm person. He's not someone who gets too frantic or crazy about things.
"But he's very passionate about what he does. He's one of those students of the game. He loves this game. And I've definitely seen his growth as a player. He knows what to do and when to do it."
Safety Keelon Brookins can vouch for Shelton's commitment.
They have been roommates for three-plus years.
"Sojourn is a man of character, a man of honor," Brookins said. "He's a person when he says that he's going to do something, he's going to do it. "He has always looked out for me. He has been a big brother. If I have a question about something or I need someone to set me straight, and it's not my parents, Sojourn is that person.
"When I was down on myself about being a football player here, he encouraged me to keep my head up and he kept saying, 'You can be this. Or you can be that.'
"When I got hurt in fall camp, he was there for me. He reminded me of my faith. He told me, 'Remember where you stand, remember your family morals.'
"Sojourn is one of those people that you want to be around. He always has a smile on his face and he's always looking out for others. He's going to make you want to be a better person."
That was echoed by cornerback Derrick Tindal.
"He's like a big brother," said Tindal, who doesn't live far from Shelton in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. "I go to him when I need advice about anything, anything in life."
Shelton was particularly helpful when Tindal lost his mom to cancer.
"He was there for me 24/7, he helped me through it and that's when I built my respect for him," Tindal said. "I still go through it (mourning) now sometimes and he's still there for me."
Brookins, a St. Paul, Minnesota, native, and Shelton will graduate in December.
"He's always telling me, 'You always gotta have hope, you always gotta have faith," said Brookins, who will also remember Shelton saying, "Work hard and never get down on yourself."
He will remember that smile, too.
• • • •
On Saturday, Sojourn Shelton will play his final home game at Camp Randall Stadium.
He will be sad. But he will not shed a tear.
"It's kind of hard for me to cry," he said. "Only when a family member passes away."
That was put to the test when Tindal was grieving over the loss of his mom.
"Me and DT have a really close relationship just being from the same area, he's two streets over from where my family is from in Florida," Shelton said. "He's someone very close to me.
"I've always told him, 'If you need anything … if you just want to talk at 2 in the morning or anything like that, you just give me a call. I'm always here for you.' He's basically my brother."
Shelton feels the same way about Brookins.
"Our families have even connected," Shelton said. "His family is like a part of my family. If there's something Keelon needs, he can call my family. And I know that I can call his.
"I've always tried to tell him to stay positive. It's the only thing you can do as a friend, as a brother, as a teammate. You know there are going to be some big things in the end for him.
"And that's whether it's playing football or finding a job, whatever is God's plan, it's going to come into effect."
Shelton's family will be waiting for him on the field for senior introductions.
"The people I hold dearest to my heart," he said.
Shelton's mom will be smiling knowing her son will be getting his degree in December.
"That was very important to me," said Shelton, a life sciences communication major. "It also was a really big goal that my mother wanted me to accomplish.
"I'm really excited that I was able to make her happy to come here and get a degree in four years, which is not an easy thing to do. But I put myself in a good position for life."
Life after football. When he's done playing, he'd like to get involved in broadcasting.
"The time here has gone by so fast," said Shelton, a starter in 48 of 51 games. "As a freshman and even as a sophomore and junior, you take for granted the amount of opportunities you have …"
To play a game at Camp Randall.
"When you get to the end, it's like, 'Wow. This is the last one.' I'm sure it will be emotional on Saturday. But I will be focused on finding a way to beat Minnesota."
• • • •
After a recent practice, Shelton was smiling while talking about his passion for video games.
"It's a stress reliever, something I've enjoyed doing since I was a little kid," he said. "That's my getaway time from the stress from school, stress from football, stress from just life.
NBA 2K. FIFA. Call of Duty. And so many more.
"I have too many favorites to list," he said. "When I first came here, I used to play Madden against James (White) and Melvin (Gordon) all the time.
"I looked up to those guys and I really considered them as brothers. I still talk to them on the daily now. I play Xbox with James all the time if he's not at practice (with the New England Patriots)."
Shelton and White hit it off immediately, largely because White is also a Floridian.
"James being from the same area that I came from could relate to being hundreds of thousands of miles away from home," said Shelton, exaggerating the distance to make his point.
"He took me under his wing. I take little things that people say to me, I think about them and I try to apply them. A lot of things that have worked for a successful person can work for me.
"To be honest, I really didn't know much about a lot of the guys, outside of the secondary people, when I first got here. Everything was so brand new."
Shelton remembered his first encounter with linebacker Chris Borland.
"He was a freak of nature as an athlete," said Shelton, who started as a true freshman. "And he was just one of those people that there was so much positive energy around him.
"You just hoped you were good enough to be on the field and share it with him. I didn't want to disappoint any of the guys. Borland. Dez (Southward). Conor (O'Neill). Beau (Allen)."
In the season opener against UMass, his college debut, Shelton picked off a pass.
"My first college football game, my first career interception, my first start," said Shelton, the first true freshman to start an opener since center Travis Frederick in 2009. "A lot of good memories."
The ending to the regular season wasn't bad, either. A win at Minnesota.
But Shelton was unprepared for what happened in the postgame celebration.
"What do you do when the star of the team writes on a whiteboard '10 straight' and then says, 'Here, hold this' and he puts you on his shoulders?"' Shelton asked rhetorically.
"I was a freshman. I was going to tell Chris Borland, 'No, don't put me on your shoulders?' I still remember him carrying me around the ring of the stadium. It was a good introduction to the rivalry."
One that will be renewed Saturday for a final time for Shelton.
To this end, or ending, he spoke to his teammates about what was meaningful to him about his journey as a student-athlete prior to the start of the 2016 season.
"As a senior," Shelton recalled, "I told them, 'This time goes by fast. Don't take it for granted. Every time you get a chance to run out of the tunnel and play football, enjoy it.
"Because at some point, you're going to be where we're at, which is in the front of the room (as seniors) and you're going to be looking at the clock and it's ticking and it's not going to stop. Have fun.'"
He smiled. That's one side of Shelton that people have seen. And will miss.
