Student-Athlete of the Week – Tayten Shartel

“That is an all around athlete right there,” Yucca Valley head football coach Jeremy Johnson said.

He’s talking about Tayten Shartel, the 2019 DVL Offensive Player of the Year and captain of the Yucca Valley football team. 

“I’ve been playing for a long time, so it’s had a big impact on me. It’s shaped me and it’s made me who I am today,” Shartel said.

“I can pretty much put him in any position on this field and he can do it,” Johnson said.

That includes in the classroom where Shartel holds a 3.2 GPA.

“I like learning. I love to improve on my physical abilities, but also mental abilities. I always try and strive to be the best at whatever I’m doing,” Shartel said.

“For him to be able to hold down the athletics and hold down the academics and come out here and still be a leader and still be positive through this whole situation shows a lot of character in that young man,” Johnson said.

Yucca Valley’s new head Coach Jeremy Johnson says having a player like Shartel has been a huge asset to him in his first season.

“He’s just, he’s that guy everybody wishes they had,” he said.

“It just drives me more, makes me more motivated to become even a better player, athlete, friend… do it all for my family and my teammates, you know. Do it for everybody that has supported me,” Shartel said.

Shartel says his mother in particular has been a huge inspiration. He hopes to continue his football career in college and is thinking of pursuing a career in engineering.

“Tayten is the kid that I think can definitely go to the next level and really make something of himself,” Johnson said.