Pretty good article, though I got a kick out of the writer calling the 6'2 187 pound Jaxson "compact." A White guy just has to be pigeon-holed as a possession receiver no matter how big or fast he is.
Jaxon Shipley set to take his turn at older brother Jordan's records
by Kirk Bohls
Theirs is a rather unique sibling rivalry, mostly because there really is no rivalry at all.
The next swing Jordan and Jaxon Shipley take at each other would probably be their first since they tied pillows to their hands as homemade gloves when Jaxon was 7 and Jordan was 14.
Texas fans know Jordan Shipley as the best wide receiver in Longhorns football history. They're eager to know Jaxon Shipley as the legitimate second coming on a quest to top his older brother's decorated career. Jordan was that good. Jaxon probably will be, too.
Beyond any football field, however, fans should know they are best friends.
How good?
When Jordan recites his wedding vows in May with rising country-western songwriter and country/blues and folk rock artist Sunny Helms â€" a girl he met when he was an eighth-grade quarterback and she was a ninth-grade cheerleader in Rotan â€" Jaxon will hand him the ring as his best man.
While quarterback David Ash and three other Longhorns signees begin to get acclimated to Division I football this week when Texas opens its spring practices, Jaxon was more interested in the dozen bass that he and Jordan fished out of Lake Amistad northwest of Del Rio on Jordan's 21-foot boat Thursday, and the pass routes the two will run in Brownwood once the three torn shoulder ligaments that Jordan had surgically repaired in January heal.
College can wait. The meter's running on quality time with Jordan.
In fact, Jaxon graduated early from Brownwood High in December specifically for this last chance at extended time together. He passed up both a shot at a state track championship after qualifying for the state meet in four events last spring and an opportunity to get a jump on other receivers at Texas for next fall.
He wanted to hang with big brother one more time, even though they're separated in age by seven years.
Dad's reaction? He was ticked off.
"At first, I laughed at him when he told me," Bob Shipley said this week. "When he told me again, I got mad at him. He could have gone to state in five events this year and maybe won a state championship. But I could see it's a chance of a lifetime for him not to have to worry about school but just train with Jordan. They really are best friends. Jordan's his biggest fan."
Two peas, one pod.
They're different, but the same.
They have the same muscular, compact body frame, although at 6-2, 187, Jaxon's a little taller. Jordan's a little thicker. Jaxon's a little more loose-hipped and flexible. They speak with the same Texas country twang, but Jaxon shows it off more often as the more outgoing of the two. They both play the guitar with varying degrees of accomplishment.
Jaxon's been in love with the Longhorns since the second grade and used to slide, belly-first, down the grass berms at Denius Fields while his older brother practiced.
When a rumor cropped up that he was reconsidering his commitment to Texas and thinking about TCU like his uncle, Stephen Shipley â€" the Frogs' second-leading receiver ever â€" Bob heard it as well, but discounted it. Jaxon was so burnt orange, dad never sent out a single recruiting film or answered the tons of offers in the mail.
Jordan went to Texas first, leaving after six injury-filled but brilliant seasons.
On the field, Jordan was a consummate perfectionist. Even his dad concedes Jordan lost a step after his knee surgery at Texas and had to refine his game and become one of the best route runners ever. Jaxon's faster, jumps better and has made the fade deep ball his signature play.
"That's my route, the corner post," Jaxon said while preparing for the U.S. vs. The World all-star exhibition at Westlake earlier this month. "I'm more of a jump-ball type guy."
When Jordan came to Texas from Burnet, he arrived amid much fanfare as an accomplished receiver who had 264 receptions for 5,424 yards and 73 touchdowns at Rotan and Burnet. Jaxon's is just as celebrated, with 199 receptions for 3,194 yards and 43 touchdowns his last three seasons. Of his 27 touchdowns last season, 16 came in a four-game stretch, including two of his five punt returns for scores.
Before he left Texas, Jordan had set school records for most catches and yardage in a single season. Jaxon wants to do even better. He plans to wear the same No. 8 that Jordan did, even though he wanted to be the next Jerry Rice before he did the next Jordan Shipley.
Can Jaxon be as good?
"There's no way I can answer that question," he said. "There's obviously a lot of pressure. Jordan told me not to try to live up to what he's done, but I've got my eyes set on his records. I have it in front of my face."
And Jordan plans to help him get there.
"I think he's definitely going to be able to do his own deal and have his own success," Jordan said. "I'm not too worried about that. I don't want him trying to live up to anything. But he can go up and get 'em."
They're cut from the same cloth. A pair of old-school, throwback football players with little if any ego. Both are tougher than an auditor's heart.
Jaxon won five gold medals in district track last year and would have competed at state in the triple jump as well, but track coach Don Hood relieved him of that duty because of a bad back. While mending from surgery, Jordan has to cast left-handed when he goes fishing.
In personalities, Jordan's the shy one. Asked what he's in charge of for the wedding, Jordan said, "The honeymoon."
That may have been Jordan's first colorful quote in his life. Jaxon's a little more fiery, but when he recently heard that a teammate had called him cocky, he sought out the guy to chastise him.
"Jaxon's very humble," Bob said. "That's one of the maddest (times) I've seen him."
They're driven in the same way, eyes and heart trained on the team prize rather than individual accolades. Why, not long ago, Jordan's mother happened across his Rose Bowl ring, stashed in the glove box of his old work truck. The other six rings Jordan earned as a Longhorn rest now in a safety deposit box.
Jordan's never worn one in public.
His parents are so conscious of Jordan's celebrity as a two-time All-American that they were intent upon keeping him off any pedestal out of love and respect for Jaxon and his two sisters.
Until they moved to Brownwood, the Shipley home contained not a single photograph of Jordan in a football uniform in the entire house.
When they moved into a 5,000-square foot, 150-year-old home that even had a library, Shelby and Addie Jane â€" athletes in their own right, with Shelby playing basketball at Abilene Christian and Addie Jane a hurdler and triple jumper in high school â€" suggested using the book sanctuary as a proper home of all of Jordan's memorabilia.
It's a fitting storage place because of all the record books Jordan rewrote. But don't be surprised if, in four years, the Shipleys need a bigger library.
http://www.statesman.com/sports/longhorns/jaxon-shipley-set-to-take-his-turn-at-1268272.html?page=2&viewAsSinglePage=true
