Transfer Tales: How Caleb Shaffer and Oklahoma Can Help One Another Reach the Next Level
NORMAN — Entering the transfer portal, sought-after offensive lineman Caleb Shaffer knew what he was looking for in his landing spot right away. With only a season of eligibility remaining, his ticket to the next level is now directly in front of him.
The 6-foot-5, 333-pound guard comes to Norman as a key piece to the puzzle from the portal market. As a three-year starter at Miami-Ohio who’s now looking for an opportunity for development, Shaffer isn’t wasting any time.
At OU — where spring practice starts next week — he’ll help replace Robert Congel and Chris Murray, and could compete for a starting position with McKade Mettauer and Savion Byrd. In addition to Congel and Murray, the Sooners also lost veteran NFL Draft prospects along the line in Anton Harrison and Wanya Morris, giving Shaffer a unique path to leadership in the locker room, too.
Caleb Shaffer
“Coach (Bill) Bedenbaugh’s resume speaks for itself," Shaffer said. "You come to him, he's gonna develop you and you're gonna be one of the best if you buy into it. After doing my research and talking to him, I just really got that sense that he's gonna challenge me, he's gonna push me every day. Where I'm trying to go, I really feel like he can help get me there, so every day I'm gonna trust and believe in his vision for me and do everything I can to come out there and not only be a great athlete, but be a great teammate. I'm really trying to connect with these guys and build relationships.
“I’m only here for a year but you'd be surprised how much you can get done in a year. Whether it's hanging out with guys one day, talking to athletic trainers, being with the nutritionists. I'm just really trying to get to know the people in these buildings who I'm working with. Because I really feel like those strong bonds keep you together in the fall when things get rough and the season starts going.”
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Shaffer’s intentions are to spend a year in Norman, but with the COVID-19 exception, the offensive lineman can add another season to his college career if need be. With his size and talent, though, he believes Oklahoma’s coaching staff can fine-tune the edges and help him get where he needs to go in a hurry.
“Obviously I knew who Oklahoma was. When I was in the portal and they got my phone, I had to take a minute, like I said, I was starstruck. All of this, it’s pretty new to me, you know, but I'm just trying to do my best, to take it day by day and really remember why I came here — which is to work. I'm just beyond thankful to Coach (Brent) Venables and Coach Bedenbaugh for giving me this opportunity.
"They say talent is distributed evenly but opportunity isn't. And basically what that means, is sometimes people just need an opportunity, they need a chance. I was sitting in the portal, I just needed someone to believe in me. I'm beyond grateful it was them. I’m trying to come in here and show them I'm really serious about my development.
“And it's not only what I can get from them, but what I can give to them as well. My hope is, you know, with all the games I’ve played, I can bring some veteran experience in here. Help mentor along and be there for the younger guys as well, and really try and leave a positive impact.”
The bulk of Shaffer’s development took place at Miami, where the versatile blocker was a three-year starter and played in almost every game from 2019. He started all 13 games in 2021 and earned an All-MAC Academic honor.
He was a second-team All-MAC selection in 2022 under former OU offensive line coach James Patton. Shaffer ranked third on the team with 717 offensive snaps, according to Pro Football Focus. He graded out at 68.2 as a pass blocker this season (second among Miami offensive linemen) and 58.7 in run blocking schemes (second.)
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Shaffer wasn't quite sure what to expect when he entered the transfer portal, but quickly found out how valuable his services were around the country. His recruiting cycle was much different, years removed from high school, with big-time schools and legendary coaches now in the fold.
"Truth be told, I was a little starstruck if I'm being honest," Shaffer said. "Growing up for me … Texas, Oklahoma, the Red River Rivalry, all that type of stuff — a kid from Indiana, that's like the pinnacle of college football. You put that next to like Alabama, Georgia and those crazy schools.
"For me, my recruitment wasn’t really like that (out of high school), so for me to receive that interest in the portal, I was grateful because it kind of allowed me to reflect on the progress I made. Coming out of high school, it had been long, four long years (of) me putting in work. I'm not anywhere near the player I am now when I was coming out of high school."
The first time around, Shaffer reeled in offers from Purdue, Ball State, Bowling Green, Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Ohio, Toledo and FCS programs before committing to Miami. As a graduate of Carmel High School and a team captain on the football field, his potential was clear and the ceiling was high.
Over the course of four years in Carmel, Shaffer earned first team all-conference and broke the school record for offensive line production points. He helped lead his team to the 6A state title game and set the school record for pancake blocks. In addition to starring on the gridiron, Shaffer also lettered for the track team.
Now, Oklahoma looks to reap the benefits of Shaffer’s hard work and development by plugging him in as an instant bridge-player on a veteran-depleted offensive line. It’s not common to add a lineman with 36 collegiate starts under his belt to the fold in the offseason. The addition of the Miami (Ohio) transfer was necessary for the Sooners, and his continued development will be important up front.
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In the same breath, Shaffer's connection with Bedenbaugh and Oklahoma was just as necessary for his personal and professional goals too.
Transferring to a school like OU, with three Pro Bowl offensive linemen in the NFL last season and a handful of other ultra-successful blockers at the next level, Shaffer is positioning himself in a smart manner. With a successful senior campaign in Norman, scouts will take notice.
“Where the experience kind of comes into play is just being professional," Shaffer mentioned. "If anything, if anyone wants to look at me, I want to try and be the best example of how to be a professional. How to come in this building daily and handle your business. Stay out of trouble and take advantage of the great opportunities that are here. What they got going on here is really rare. I haven't really seen this anywhere else.
"The best thing I can contribute as an older guy is really to just come in here and be professional every day — do things the right way. And when I can, if the younger guys have a question or anything, not even football-related, but just about growing up, mental health in this sport, all the big issues that us as college athletes tackle — if I can just be a positive, sound piece of encouragement for them, I really want to try and do that.”
His influence in the locker room and impact on the field will be crucial for a young Sooners team all offseason and next fall. The lasting legacy he plans to leave in Norman stretches far beyond the football field, though.
As someone who has battled the ups and downs of mental health in college athletics, Shaffer was sold on OU's S.O.U.L. mission and wants to eventually give back in some way.
"It's a huge reason why I came here," Shaffer said of Oklahoma's unique nurturing system. "S.O.U.L. Mission has honestly been life-saving, not only to me, but I can tell the rest of these guys too. A big thing people don't talk about is how how to prepare athletes past just a sport. Because for four or five years, your hand is attached to that ball or whatever you play.
“But when you get thrust into the real world and it's time to get a job and whatnot, you'd be surprised how many college athletes are kind of left handicapped, in a sense, professionally, because you didn't have things like S.O.U.L. to show them how to prepare a resume, how to conduct yourself in public, how to network professionally.
"These little things that really matter and kind of determine your professional outcome," Shaffer continued. "That was a really big reason why I came here. Credit to Ryan Young, Curtis Lofton, Mrs. Zu (Losman, Coordinator of S.O.U.L. Mission), Caleb Kelly and all the other people that really set that stuff up. They've done an extremely good job. I already signed up for both service trips and the internship — so I really plan to take full advantage of this thing while I'm here and see what opportunities that leads to.”
Venables started the S.O.U.L. Mission program when he arrived in Norman, and since then, it has really taken off. With dedicated athletes like Shaffer to carry the torch, the mission could be only scratching the surface of the resource it could become for college athletes.
When hired, Oklahoma's head coach described the mission as a "leadership initiative program."
"We have an opportunity to have some generational change if we can keep the main thing the main thing," Venables said last February. "That’s equipping these young people and pouring life into them. Making sure that we’re not just asking the right questions, but putting the right resources and people where they need to be.”
Caleb Shaffer via Twitter
It's easy to see how Shaffer fell in love with the opportunity at Oklahoma, both on and off the field. He has a serious chance to make an immediate impact protecting quarterback Dillon Gabriel — and reach the next level with a strong season as part of the Sooners' high-powered offensive attack.
He also has his sights set on helping Oklahoma, and college athletes just like him, in a game much bigger than football — the game of life.
“Mental health is everything to me personally, as someone who's actually struggled with mental health a few times specifically in college,” Shaffer said. “It just showed me the value of really reaching out to people. Males especially, but if we want to take it a step further, black males especially, (talking about) mental health is not something that’s encouraged. They tell you to stay quiet, don't say anything, you know, or you're soft if you speak out.
"I'll be honest, last year, I really had to learn that it was healthy to cry, it was healthy to display emotion, you know. That was something I struggled with for so long, crying and showing emotion because it was always viewed as a weakness. But it's so much harder, and almost keeps you bitter, trying to hold in all those hard things that happen to us in life."
His unique perspective on life after football has ignited a dream to change the status quo regarding the topic of mental health in college football.
"Life is going to be hard, we’re going to go through so many things — but you shouldn't be told ‘Get over it and suck it up.’ There should be avenues of people, or systems and programs, that are able to help you and actually support you and let you know ‘No, I see you and I hear you and what you're going through is not invalid regardless of your socio-economic status or all these other things. You matter, and your problems matter.’
"One of the big things I definitely want to do, hopefully, once I leave Oklahoma, is I would love to open up my own foundation for mental health geared towards that specifically, and what I went through. Suicide is a big and horrible thing in this country, you know, it's taken out a lot of people my age, especially. If there's anything I can do with my platform, or resources, it’s to help and be a lifeline to other people who are in my situation.”
The Sooners found a transfer portal gem in an experienced, team-first leader like Shaffer. Now, he'll try to make the most of his year at Oklahoma, and begin to build a lasting legacy off the field.
