Jeremiah Shaw signed a letter of intent to play football Bethel College out of North Newton, Kansas this morning in the Booneville High School auditorium.
Shaw picked the Threshers out of 21 total offers because, “it just felt like family. It felt like Booneville, the way they do it. The way they wear their grays for workouts. The way they do pregame, it felt like Booneville and that’s what I want to be a part of again.”
That was important since the campuses are separated by almost five hours of drive time.
Shaw made two visits before committing and has made another since a verbal commitment to the Thresher program.
A thresher, by the way, is a farm implement that separates grain from stalks and husks.
Shaw was joined on stage by his fifth-grade sister, mother, and father and signed in front of the student body.
A guard for the Bearcats, Shaw said he expects that to be his initial job in Kansas.
“My freshman year they want to start me out at guard, learn the role, and my sophomore year move over to tackle,” said Shaw.
Among the 20 schools Bethel beat out for Shaw's services was Northwestern (Iowa), who teammate Sam Hicks signed with in December. Northwestern was the early choice as they were the first to offer.
Bethel is a member of the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) that plays games in Missouri and Kansas.
The Threshers were 3-8 in 2025, a combined 11-11 the two years prior, and won nine games each season from 2020-2022.
Shaw said he plans to major in sports management and communication and add a minor in business while at Bethel.
Bearcat offensive line coach Jacob Hattabaugh credited Shaw’s work ethic for making the day possible.
“I think about your journey as far as a player, the growth that you had from when I saw you that first time in the fieldhouse doing those stretches,” said Hattabuagh. “We had quite a bit of work to do but you got it done and that’s a testament to your hard work.
“You earned that starting spot when you were a junior and you didn’t let it go after that. That junior year to senior year and the leadership you took, that’s a big reason why you’re signing.”
Hattabaugh also said the growth is ongoing.
“I had a coach from Washburn call me and ask me about you and I had nothing but good things things to say about you,” said Hattabaugh. “The thing I told him the most is the best football for Jeremiah is in college. He’s still growing and he’s going to get better.”
Hattabaugh added that the coaching staff has loved Shaw since day one when he arrived as a freshman.
“Jeremiah on behalf of our school we’re very proud of you and we know that you’ll take everything that you learned here to college and you’ll make us very proud,” said athletic director Josh Walker.
SHAW SIGNS LETTER OF INTENT WITH BETHEL COLLEGE
