Beginning the sport at just seven years old, wide receiver Elan Shetty ’26 has always loved football, admiring the players he saw on Television. He began playing football as a Junior and has since risen up in the ranks, displaying strong leadership as a Co-Captain this season.
According to Shetty, he and his Co-Captains strive to set a higher standard for the forty players on the varsity roster. They aim to enforce a positive precedent for the team built on accountability, effort, and respect.
“It goes beyond just football itself. It goes into the community, into school. It’s about how you handle yourself as an individual and not just a football player. You’re an important person within the Phillips community,” said Shetty.
This standard is shown throughout campus and through everyday actions that may often go unrecognized. Shetty emphasized that this leadership style serves as an extension of the team’s culture, making compounding impact even off the field.
“I can see [our standards] in a lot of different ways. In ASM, a lot of people usually talk and go on their phones. Usually we’ll get good feedback, from some other people, about football players that put their phone away and listened. If we’re in commons, and there’s dirty plates out, instead of leaving it to the cafeteria [staff] to clean up, we will go and pick up those plates. It’s the small things like that,” said Shetty.
In addition to his positive mindset, Shetty is seen as a symbol of strength and hard work among the players. Giovanni Rosenfeld ’27, an Upper on the team and fellow wide receiver, highlighted this quality.
“Grit, man. When [Shetty] gets hit, he just gets up. No emotion, no sign of pain. He’s tough, and that toughness rubs off on everyone else… In the [game against Williston on September 20 (0-27)], he got a screen, but the blocking didn’t go too well. He got tackled in the backfield and took a brutal hit, but he just got up like nothing happened,” said Rosenfeld.
In addition, Shetty hopes to instill similar lessons in all of his teammates, regardless of age and experience. For new players specifically, he helps them to adjust to the football expectations along with the school culture.
“When you come to a school like Phillips, it’s a lot different than anything you’ve seen before. The most important thing, whether you’re a new [Junior], [Lower], [Upper], or even a PG, is trying to get them up to speed on what it means to not only be a Phillips Andover football player, but to be a Phillips student. How you’re supposed to act in the classroom, how you’re supposed to act on the paths, it’s a lot different than what you might see at a normal high school or your old high school that you might be coming from,” said Shetty.
According to Rosenfeld, Shetty stands out for his calm and steady leadership, supporting the team consistently. He doesn’t command or raise his voice, his actions draw the team together and remind them of the importance of teamwork.
“He’s incredibly humble. His highs aren’t too high, and his lows aren’t too low. He’s steady, composed, and just a genuinely great person. During winter lifts last year, we had some rough moments. He brought everyone together, no one took all the blame. It was more like, ‘We’re in this together.’ That really bonded us as a team,” said Rosenfeld.
Tyler Baty ’27 elaborated on how Shetty instills confidence in his teammates. Baty highlighted Shetty’s ability to motivate through words rather than size or strength.
“Words are power. He’s one of those guys that are always telling us to keep our heads up. He’s not the biggest, he’s not the tallest, and he’s not the strongest guy out there. But out on the football field, I’d say especially with young receivers, he teaches them the ropes about different catching techniques and whatnot. And off the field, he gives advice on just how to manage Andover in terms of the workload and what types of help you can get around campus. As a [Co-]Captain, that’s a really big help, especially for people who are new, not just freshmen, but even PG’s. So knowing that and him doing these things are really motivational to keep the team going,” said Baty.
