By Kyle Coppola
Mount Dora High Offensive Lineman Shaddiel Torres Is Turning Heads
Shaddiel Torres is entering his junior year at Mount Dora High School and turning heads. The 6’3, 280-pound offensive lineman has been impressive to watch. Torres can play all five offensive line positions. Quarterback Jake Sepe says, “Shaddiel has great size, is a great leader, and has good character.”
(Shaddiel Torres is very difficult to move. His lower body has a ton of strength. He often times opened gaps for his running backs last year but was really good in pass protection. Photo Credit – JOE OTT PHOTOGRAPHY)
Torres gets it done on and off the field. He maintains a 3.5 GPA and he’s the kind of kid you love having on a team. “Man, I love my offensive line, these guys worked their butts off last year to replace an offensive line of all seniors. I am proud of every one of these guys,” says quarterback Jake Sepe. Rightfully so, Jake Sepe enters 2024 as one of the most exciting quarterbacks in Lake County with a lot to prove. It’s been a long time since Mount Dora High has been in the FHSAA Playoffs. Is this the year they make that happen?
(Shaddiel Torres #66 during a breast cancer awareness game at Mount Dora High. Photo Credit – JOE OTT PHOTOGRAPHY)
The good news for Mount Dora High is that Sepe gets plenty of protection from Torres and that’s going to continue this year. Torres has put on an impressive amount of muscle this offseason. Torres can squat 400 pounds. When you see film on this guy, his bottom half is very difficult to move. He might be 6’3″, but he plays even bigger. He plays the offensive line position like a veteran. His footwork is great and scouts need to take a serious look at him.
A ton of his power comes from his legs that look like tree trunks. He’s going to be turning a lot of heads this year if he isn’t already.
(Shaddiel Torres right #66 is demolishing a South Lake defender allowing running back Isaac Slegers to run through a gap. Photo Credit – JOE OTT PHOTOGRAPHY)
The Mount Dora offensive line will be amazing this year. Also returning is Zach Smith, another big offensive lineman with a lot of potential. He is a 6’5″, 270-pound offensive tackle. He’s been putting in work at Division 1 football camps and looks very strong coming into the season.
Mount Dora High is looking like a contender this year. If the offensive line is any indication, Mount Dora High is poised for big things. With Tymir Gaines, Zyshonne Perry, Jake Sepe, and Blake Sepe to name a few, the team looks stacked in 2024.
Shaddiel Torres is a name that people may not recognize yet, but I think this will be a massive breakout junior year for him. He’s been putting in the work, and he’s a name you will hear a lot more of in 2024.
Kyle Coppola was born in Newton, Massachusetts and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communications from Curry College in 2016. After traveling to Florida on a family vacation, he decided he could not get enough of the warm weather and made the move from snowy Massachusetts to central Florida 8 years ago.
For the last decade Kyle has gained valuable experience in social media content creation, marketing and sales, writing, video production, sports announcing and even broadcasting for local radio stations, such as FM 102.9 in The Villages and FM 91.5 in Massachusetts. Every year he volunteers at The Villages Charter High School as a play-by-play sports announcer for the football games as well as a public address announcer for the basketball games, including the annual Battle at The Villages Tournament.
Outside the office Kyle is a husband and father to two beautiful girls along with their cat. In his spare time he likes to spend time with his family, travel, play golf and swim. He is also a huge sports junkie and even bigger motorsports fan and loves to attend racing events when he can.
