Nothing has been given to Gavin Shields in his Army football career.
Shields embraced his role on the scout team and bought into special teams his freshman year. After appearing in one game as a plebe, Shields became a regular contributor to Army’s “Sauce Team” on special teams sophomore season.
The Pitman, N.J. resident worked his way onto the 2-deep his junior as Army’s fifth defensive back in passing situations. He also stepped up when starters Max DiDomenico and Casey Larkin were banged up.
This summer, Shields is getting his chance to be a starter. Army coaches have moved Shields from free safety to the hybrid Apache position (linebacker/defensive back), taking advantage of his athleticism and versatility.
“For me it’s been a pretty good transition,” Shields said. “I’m supposed to know as a free safety what everyone is doing on each side of the field. For me, getting reps there (at apache), it’s helping me a lot just to know the full scope of the defense and being closer to the defensive line and closer to the box and being able to work through that has been pretty good for me to understand the whole scope of the defense.”
Shields’ move closer to the line of scrimmage opened when senior Eric Ford returned to his edge rushing position after 2024 starter Elo Modozie transferred to Georgia. Ford practiced at apache during the spring. Safeties coach Danny Verpaele said having Shields play apache is a way for Army to get its best and most experienced players at the field at once.
“He’s very athletic and talented so he has the position flexibility to play on the back end and play up there (apache),” Verpaele said of Shields. .
“He’s a Jersey kid, he’s a tough kid. He loves football and he loves his team. That’s why he is here. He’s just an amazing human being. I’ve got to know him really well and his family. I’m really proud of him.”
Toughness is also one of Shields’ best qualities. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound played through two cracked ribs against Temple when a starting safety was injured last season.
“I’ve bought into the culture of toughness,” Shields said. “Coach (Jeff) Monken talks about it all of the time and it’s just one of those things. We’re going to be Army officers. We have to be tough. We are representing our country. We have millions of soldiers who are watching us every week and we represent them. So, we have to be tough. When people watch us, they expect us to be tough. And when teams watch us, they know we are a tough team.
“It’s not even a thought in my brain if I’m hurting, I know I’m going to be tough and I don’t even think about it and I’m just going to go out there and play.”
Shields chose to attend West Point and play football on a “whim,” he said. He had committed to play football and baseball at another school during the COVID year. Army coaches reached out to Shields in May of his senior season at Red Lion Christian Academy in Delaware.
“I said, ”You know what it’s the best for my future and this is a brotherhood unlike anything else,'” said Shields, who played his first three years of high school football at Glassboro, N.J.. “I had seen so much about Army and the brotherhood. That’s all I wanted in my life, a good group of guys. I committed and came here on a whim. In four months, I did all of the things to get into West Point. I got into prep school and that’s where I met my best friends and guys I’m still playing with today.”
Shields, who paired Larkin at Army Prep, credits Army 2022 captain Marquel Broughton with mentoring him through his first season at West Point.
“He (Broughton) just inspired me so much in the safeties room,” Shields said. “Safety was a perfect place to be in that aspect of things because I learned so much from Marquel and Q Hammonds. Just those guys alone pushed me to learn in general not just about football but about everything else.”
Every season, it seems an Army senior defensive player makes an impact in his first year as a starter. Last year, it was Chance Keith at apache. It’s now time for Shields to make his mark.
