Boise State offensive lineman getting in football shape after two-year mission in Peru
Update: A Boise State spokesman said Sunday afternoon that due to financial reasons, offensive lineman Braydin Shipp will not join the Broncos’ 2020 class.
Freshman year comes with culture shock for most college students, especially Division I football players.
Being away from home and adjusting to all that comes with a foreign environment can be a bit trying, but that’s where incoming Boise State offensive lineman Braydin Shipp may have a leg up on his classmates.
Shipp signed with Boise State in 2018 after graduating from American Fork High School in Utah, but he spent the past two years on a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Lima, Peru.
“I always had those two goals: play college football and serve my mission. But my mission was my first priority,” Shipp said. “To pay my debt to God and be able to come back and play football is a blessing.”
He returned to the United States on April 10 and planned to join the Broncos in May, but after Boise State shut its campus down in response to the spread of coronavirus, Shipp said those plans are on hold.
A Boise State spokesperson confirmed Shipp will join the 2020 class this offseason.
Though there isn’t yet a timetable for him to join the team, Shipp said Boise State is getting a different person on and off the field than the hefty left tackle who 247Sports rated as a three-star prospect and the No. 20 overall recruit in Utah in 2018.
“I learned how to work harder and how to adjust to a different style of living,” Shipp said.
Unfamiliar with his surroundings, the language, the cuisine or his companions, Shipp said it took him three or four months to feel settled in Peru. Luckily, he kept so busy he barely had time to mull his discomfort.
Shipp and one of the many companions he shared the experience with woke most mornings at 7:30 a.m. for breakfast and a planning session. Then it was scripture study, prayer and lunch before hitting the street to share their message until around 10:30 p.m.
He lived with 10 different companions from Columbia, Ecuador, Bolivia, Mexico and the U.S., but no matter how different their backgrounds were, they all shared the common sacrifice of putting their lives on hold to fulfill their mission.
“Some were going to play pro soccer in South America. Some had academic scholarships in the U.S.,” Shipp said. “Living with companions from so many different cultures, I learned how to be patient.”
The long days and demanding schedule didn’t leave Shipp much time to work out while in Peru, and he dropped from 313 pounds as a senior at American Fork to about 260.
Shipp, who stands 6-foot-6, said he’s working with a personal trainer daily to get back into football shape, but he knows he has a ways to go.
“When I get to Boise, it will just be another step and I’ll be able to get used to the team and the playbook and life in college,” Shipp said.
After spending his freshman year in Oklahoma, Shipp moved to Utah as a sophomore and started at right guard, right tackle and left tackle during a three-year varsity career at American Fork.
He said Boise State originally recruited him as a guard, but he hasn’t had any recent conversations with coaches about what position he’ll play. He’s joining the fold at the right time, though.
The Broncos have to replace four starters on the offensive line this season, including left tackle Ezra Cleveland, who left a year early for the NFL Draft and is receiving first-round consideration.
Boise State was the only program that offered Shipp a scholarship coming out of high school. The Broncos offered his junior year, and after following the program vicariously through family members in Boise for years, he immediately knew it was the place for him.
“It has that blue-collar mentality. Walk in the weight room and you can tell,” Shipp said. “Obviously, they’re always winning. It’s a good school where I’m going to get a great education, win a lot of football games and be around a lot of cool guys.”
This story was originally published April 5, 2020 at 4:00 AM.
