Football:

By Brian Reed-Baiotto, Sports Editor

When San Gabriel Valley area sports fans hear the last name Shupper, the first person that probably comes to mind is Maranatha baseball coach, Matt Shupper.

Shupper led the Minutemen to a 27-4 record in 2018, and that ended with a CIF-SS Division 3 championship.

Since 2018, the baseball program has gone 115-34, which is No. 1 of the 40-plus schools that 210 Prep Sports covers.

Over that stretch, Maranatha secured Olympic League titles in each year except for the COVID-19 shortened season, where MHS only played six total games.

His father, Bill Shupper, was a successful scout, and he’s an impressive man in his own right.

But one could make the argument that Bill’s grandson, and Matt’s son, Carter Shupper is the star of the family.

Shupper excels at almost everything he does on or off the field, including football and baseball.

The vast majority of future Division 1 college football players started their careers well before they get to high school.

Carter Shupper, though, didn’t put his shoulder pads on for the first time until his sophomore year at Maranatha.

And it was a rocky beginning for all that were involved.

Rand Holdren had just been hired to stabilize what many described as a less than ideal starting point.

In the fall of 2021, Holdren’s Minutemen went 1-7, which included finishing the season on a seven-game losing streak.

However, in years two and three of the Holdren administration, Coach Rand, his staff and their players would go 20-3-1.

Since 2022, that 87-percent winning ratio is tops among the 28 football programs this site covers.

Two years ago, the Minutemen went 11-1-1, and they advanced all the way to the CIF-SS Division 13 semifinal round.

MHS would fall, 52-42, at San Gabriel High School to the eventual D-13 champs, and the CIF State Division 6 runner up.

But not before literally scoring double the points the Matadors defense averaged allowing (21) all season.

Maranatha has secured two consecutive Cottonwood League championships, and they accomplished that feat by going 10-0 in league games, and they tallied a combined margin of victory of 398-135.

Coach Holdren and his staff deserve a massive amount of credit for taking a program that resided in the cellar to the perks and beauty of the penthouse, especially considering how quickly they changed course.

But Holdren would be the first to tell you that none of this could have been accomplished without effective leaders with unimpeachable character.

It also doesn’t hurt when those same leaders have a tireless work ethic and God-given natural skills.

Who was the first player Holdren met upon his arrival at the Pasadena campus?

Yep, it was Carter Shupper.

And while Holdren could gauge Shupper’s character and work ethic, he could never have forecasted the kind of football player Carter would become after his rookie season.

“I don’t think I have ever coached a kid that I could rely on so heavily like I did Carter,” Holdren said. “He is a team guy who was willing to do whatever we needed at any given point. There are so many stories about him stepping up when needed, be it as a left tackle in our playoff game last year after our starter went down, or his sophomore year when he jumped in at quarterback when we had no one left.”

In spite of being green in 2021, Carter Shupper has led the Maranatha defense in tackles in each of his three years with the Minutemen.

And keep in mind, he’s missed some games to injury, and he didn’t always play four quarters in blowout wins or those numbers would be even higher.

Shupper had 51 tackles in 2021, 102 in 2022, and he finished out his prep career with 106 tackles this past season.

In all, he totaled 259 tackles, 26 for-loss, two sacks and one pick from the linebacker position.

In that semifinal loss at San Gabriel, Shupper was injured, and he spent almost every play on the sideline, which made a lot of us wonder “how much difference would a healthy Carter have made in a 10-point game, especially considering the Matadors ran the ball up the middle on almost every play?”

An intelligent answer would be: quite a bit of difference.

The running joke is that at 6-foot-2 and 205 pounds of muscle, there is no way Matt Shupper is his biological father.

But in all seriousness, both of Carter’s grandfathers are over 6-feet tall, including his mom’s dad, who is 6-foot-4.

Aside from linebacker, Shupper has been in a number of roles, including wide receiver, quarterback, tailback, fullback and even left tackle.

But it was his steadiness and accuracy as the Maranatha long snapper that had a number of D-1 college programs interested in his services.

Shupper has a 4.0 GPA, and if this next story told by one of his teammates doesn’t move you, nothing will.

“Carter is a very knowledgeable and an incredible individual, both on and off the football field,” Maranatha kicker/punter, Owen Meleka said. “Over his last two years that I got to know him as a long snapper, he has a strong work ethic, which extends both on and off the field, and he’s always willing to help his teammates. During the off-season last year, Carter spent time on the weekends working with me on our field goal and punt operations by long snapping for me. Not only did this help us prepare for the upcoming season, but it gave our special teams a huge advantage over many other teams. I never had to worry about the snap getting off just right, because I knew I would get a good ball in the same place every single time. This helped take pressure off of other situations throughout the game.

In addition to being a great teammate, Carter is also very helpful off the field. One evening after practice, Carter had offered tutoring assistance in Anatomy to anyone who needed it. Since Anatomy made no sense to me (and I was nearly failing the class), I took him up on his offer, which helped me save my grade. He spent his own time making flashcards for me, and he would come over to my house after practice to help me study for upcoming quizzes, tests, and finals. As a result of Carter’s dedication and patience, I finished the semester with a B+ (and I am working towards earning an A this semester with his help).”

It’s because all of the above that I’m happy to report that Carter Shupper will continue his academic and athletic careers at the University of San Diego.

A lot of credit has to go to his parents, Beth and Matt Shupper, and the rest of his extended family for the quality young man that Carter Shupper has become.

Lastly, I asked Shupper to answer the following: What was your role as you saw it for Maranatha both on and off the field? What role has baseball played in his life? What have you learned from and admired about your parents? What has Coach Rand meant to his path? What will you major in, and what is your dream career?

Said Carter Shupper: “I believe that I was definitely a leader for our team on and off the field. I was somewhat of a recruiter. I’ve played baseball all throughout high school, and had lots of friends in Maranatha’s program who I was able to bring over to play football. Two of those guys ended up being all-league defensive backs (Beau Stubbs & AJ Campana). Along with this I spent lots of time after practices and during lunches tutoring my teammates in their math and science classes, making sure they’re on top of their academics.

Every spring since I was around 8 years old, I would spend tons of time in Maranatha’s dugout with my dad and the team. Being able to be around older guys who were achieving my dream of being a D-1 athlete helped me understand what it takes to be one. They were all role models for me and they helped me understand that playing college sports was possible for me too. The biggest difference that I like about football is being able to get right back at someone the very next play. If I mess up, I get blown up and have to get up and do it better the next play. In baseball, if I screw up, I might not have a chance to fix it and do it better for the rest of the game.

My mom is amazing, and being able to learn from her is such a blessing. She has taught me how to be a student, how to work hard, and how to take care of myself for when I go to college. My dad has always pushed me to be the best version of myself, whether that is on the field, in the classroom or at home. Without either of them, I wouldn’t be who I am today. Without Coach Rand, I would have never been a football player, let alone a college football player. When he came to Maranatha and my dad finally let me play football, I was ecstatic. Since then, he has helped me on and off the field and helped get me to where I am today. I’ll be majoring in Biology on the pre-med track. My dream career is of course to play in the NFL, but even if that isn’t a possibility, I want to be around sports as long as possible. Specifically, I want to be an orthopedic surgeon for a college or professional organization, so that I am able to work with athletes as long as possible.”

To view a photo gallery of Shupper, click on the Facebook link here: Facebook

Quotable:

Maranatha coach, Rand Holdren: “Carter has been a leader since I started at Maranatha, and he was actually the first player that I met when I got the job. Not only is he 4.0 student and at full participation in ASB and campus activities, I don’t think I have ever coached a kid that I could rely on so heavily like I did Carter. He is a team guy who was willing to do whatever the team needed at any given point. There are so many stories about him stepping up when needed, be it as a left tackle in our playoff game last year after our starter went down, or his sophomore year when he jumped in at quarterback when we had no one left. Aside from countless awards and MVP honors, he is a solid person who gets it and has been an unbelievable asset to Maranatha football. I always knew that if we needed something done, Carter would rally the troops and get it done. Carter is going to be alright in life and I look forward to seeing his future at University of San Diego. He has been a blessing to have in this program and a major reason why it got turned around so fast. There is no doubt that his departure is going to leave a tremendous void here, but I believe he influenced the next group of guys to step up in his place.”

Maranatha kicker/punter, Owen Meleka: “Carter is a very knowledgeable and an incredible individual, both on and off the football field. Over his last two years that I got to know him as a long snapper, he has a strong work ethic, which extends both on and off the field, and is always willing to help his teammates. During the off-season last year, Carter spent time on the weekends working with me on our field goal and punt operations by long snapping for me. Not only did this help us prepare for the upcoming season, but it gave our special teams a huge advantage over many other teams. I never had to worry about the snap getting off just right, because I knew I would get a good ball in the same place every single time. This helped take pressure off of other situations throughout the game. In addition to being a great teammate, Carter is also very helpful off the field. One evening after practice, Carter had offered tutoring assistance in Anatomy to anyone who needed it. Since Anatomy made no sense to me (and I was nearly failing the class), I took him up on his offer, which helped me save my grade. He spent his own time making flashcards for me, and he would come over to my house after practice to help me study for upcoming quizzes, tests, and finals. As a result of Carter’s dedication and patience, I finished the semester with a B+ (and I am working towards earning an A this semester with his help). I have no doubt that the strong work ethic and character that Carter has developed will definitely prove to be beneficial to him, both in his success as a student and as a four-year starter for his college football team.”

Maranatha quarterback, Luke McNulty: “Carter is a natural leader and one of the best teammates you could ask for. Always staying positive and motivating the guys. One thing that I admire most about Carter is his team-first mentality. Carter demonstrated this in our playoff game when we were short linemen and he stepped up without hesitation putting his body on the line and never complaining about playing both ways. I have no doubt he is going to pick up right where he left off with his desire to improve and his willingness to push through the ups and downs that he will face. Carter is an ideal teammate at any level.”

Maranatha linebacker, Jacob Neely: “Carter is a player that not only pushes himself but his teammates to be the best versions of themselves. He is always looking to step in and offer tips to players who need them, yet he is also humble enough to receive tips himself. His competitive spirit is through the roof, and he will battle through much adversity to get the job done. I admire how natural football came to him and how his football IQ continues to grow. For someone to have never played tackle football until their sophomore year and already become a two-year defensive captain, and now a D-1 commit for long snapping, says something in and of itself. I don’t think, I KNOW that Carter will succeed at the collegiate level. His love, dedication, and desire to be useful wherever and whenever he is needed will transition into his play on the field and help strengthen the team community. San Diego is lucky to have him be a part of their program.”

Maranatha Records w/Carter Shupper & His Stats:
2023 (9-2, 5-0): 106 tackles, 11 tackles per game, five tackles for-loss
2022 (11-1-1, 5-0): 102 tackles, 10 tackles per game, 14 tackles for-loss, two sacks, one INT
2021: (1-7, 0-3): 51 tackles, seven tackles per game, seven tackles for-loss
Totals: (21-10 overall, 10-3 in league), 259 tackles, 26 tackles for-loss, two sacks & one INT