From Underdog to Unstoppable: Nate Sheppard’s Rise at Mandeville

by: Mike Strom // GeauxPreps.com Contributor

Nate Sheppard may not have been the poster boy that Mandeville High School principal Christian Monson had in mind three years ago when Monson arrived and installed the phrase “Seas the Day!’’ as the St. Tammany Parish school’s catchy/slash/pithy inspirational maxim for Skippers students.

Nathaniel Floyd Sheppard then was a wide-eyed, 16-year-old sophomore just beginning to make his mark on Skipper’s football. Now, a steel-hardened senior, athletically speaking, who excels as well academically, Sheppard sure seems like an ideal logo candidate today.

As one of Louisiana’s most prolific running backs who competes in the state’s highest classification, Sheppard has seized the New Orleans-area football season by the throat with his weekly heroics that have produced 1,176 rushing yards and 29 touchdowns through the undefeated Skippers’ first six games.

A Duke commitment, the 5-foot-10, 190-pound senior has scored touchdowns five different ways this season via rushing, receiving, kickoff return, punt returns, and an interception as a free safety, Sheppard’s other full-time gig when the Mandeville ironman is not leaving opposing tacklers grasping for air as a runner/receiver/return specialist.

Having rushed 105 times for 1,176 yards and 22 touchdowns, Sheppard is a lightning bolt ready to strike, having recorded pinball machine-like numbers for the Skippers. The Mandeville tailback is averaging a first down of 11.2 yards per carry along with 196.0 rushing yards per game and basically five touchdowns per outing in addition to having caught 7 passes for 104 yards and two scores.

The lion’s share of Sheppard’s 29 touchdowns have been prolific in nature. Combining 4.43-second speed in the 40 with outstanding vision and an innate ability to make would-be tacklers miss, Sheppard has scored 18 times from distances of 24 yards or longer. Twelves of his total touchdowns have covered 40 yards or more, with eight scoring runs going for 81, 80, 70, 59, 53, 51, 46, and 45 yards.

Then add touchdown runs of 25, 25, and 24 yards respectively to an 81-yard kickoff return for a touchdown versus Slidell along with three punt returns for scores covering 46, 45, and 40 yards and a 29-yard receiving touchdown.

Additionally not to be forgotten is a 20-yard interception return for a score in Mandeville’s 42-14 season-opening triumph at Salmen in which Sheppard totaled four touchdowns.

Get the picture?

Photo Courtesy: Nate Sheppard

“Nate has the ability to be a game-breaker in space,’’ Mandeville coach Craig Jones said succinctly.

A game-breaker, indeed.

Sheppard has scored no fewer than two touchdowns in any game while recording two separate contests with six touchdowns in Mandeville’s first three games. Those outings tied the program’s single-game record for touchdowns which he already shared with his older brother Will.

Those performances also set the stage for a new school mark of seven touchdowns scored in a 56-14 non-district victory versus Slidell played under the friendly confines of Mandeville’s Sidney Theriot Stadium on Oct. 4.

Sheppard rushed 17 times for 185 and five touchdowns of 11, 3, 46, 9, and 45 yards versus Slidell in addition to returning a kickoff 81 yards for a score and a punt return from 40 yards out to account for 42 the Skippers’ season-high 56 points.

Sheppard ever so humble takes the numbers and accompanying accolades in stride.

“Obviously, I’ve thought about my production on the field, but really it comes down to wins and losses and whatever I can do for my team,’’ Sheppard said. “As long as we’re winning games, I’m happy. Zero touchdowns, (or) six touchdowns, it doesn’t matter to me.’’

Nate Sheppard is not just talking politically correct. He speaks the truth as he knows and believes it. His public musings always focus around team accomplishments, constantly deflecting credit for his success to teammates, particularly his offensive line.

“That’s the real me,’’ Sheppard said. “I have to give credit to my team for who they are and what they do for me. I can’t go back there and run with no O-line and nobody else. So having them there blocking for me, I’ve got to give credit where credit is due.’’

Thoughtful, polite, and well-spoken in his answers, Sheppard explains his perspective on football and life by stating, “I think you always have to be level-headed in what you’re doing. There can always be someone out there doing something more than you, so you can’t get too big on yourself. So just staying on that center line, and even if I’m having a great season, just staying humble and remaining how I am and knowing how I can play, that’s just how I approach things.’’

Born in Hollywood, Fla., where his family lived just outside of Miami until relocating to Madisonville when Nate was age 8, Sheppard has been a running back since he began playing football four years earlier at age 4. He first played running back and linebacker in recreational football before switching defensive positions to free safety in high school.

Sheppard’s role now as a two-way starter actually began late in last year’s regular season when the Skippers won five of their final six games while advancing to the Division I Non-Select state semifinals as a No. 21 seed.

The Skippers caught fire following a 6-4 regular season to defeat No. 12 Sam Houston, 50-36, in bi-district, No. 5 St. Amant, 42-21, in regionals, and No. 4 Airline, 56-50, in the quarterfinals before falling short against top-seeded and eventual state champion Ruston, 28-7, in the semis.

Sheppard catapulted into state-wide prominence by averaging 200 rushing yards and four touchdowns a game in the four playoff contests. His 801 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns coming via 109 carries earned the Skippers junior Allstate Sugar Bowl Amateur Athlete of the Month for November 2023.

Mandeville running back Nate Sheppard (No. 20) rushed 29 times for 257 yards and two touchdowns in the Skippers’ District 6-5A victory against Covington on Oct. 11. Photo Courtesy: Joe Trombatore / Mandeville High School

Sheppard’s playoff debut came in a 50-26 upset of No. 12 Sam Houston in the bi-district round in which the then-junior rushed 35 times for 334 yards and three touchdowns. A week later, Sheppard totaled 181 yards and four touchdowns, including 106 rushing yards, in a 42-21 victory against No. 5 St. Amant.

In the ensuing quarterfinals, Sheppard again exploded, rushing 31 times for 235 yards and four touchdowns while equaling the Skippers’ single-game touchdown record of six for a second time in a wild 56-50 shootout win at No. 4 Airline.

“We won our last two games of the regular season and then we really leaned on Nate in the running game throughout the playoff run,’’ Jones said.  

Mandeville advanced to the state semifinals for the fourth time in school history, but the ensuing 28-7 loss to Ruston in which Sheppard was limited to 69 yards rushing has left the Skippers still in hot pursuit of the program’s first state championship.

“Last season was real good for us,’’ Sheppard said. “We started the regular season a little rough. We started good in the first two games, then we lost the next two. But we picked it up after our loss in week eight to St. Paul’s and then we went on a winning streak until the semifinal.’’

So what happened beyond Sheppard’s emergence as a true force of football nature?

“I think we just really bought in,’’ Sheppard said. “It took us a little bit (of time). The season was real rough for us in Coach Jones’ first season (in 2022 at 4-6 with no playoffs). The second season we had our bumps and our differences. But I think after that week eight loss (21-18 against St. Paul’s) we just sat down and decided what we wanted to be.’’

Jones, a former Mandeville football player and 1999 MHS graduate, has played a major role in his alma mater’s resurgence since arriving from cross-parish rival Lakeshore in 2022, which just so happened to coincide with Sheppard’s move into a full-time starter as a 10th-grader.

Highly regarded as an offensive innovator, Jones directed Lakeshore to nine consecutive state playoffs appearances in as many seasons as head coach, compiling a 71-35 record that was highlighted by a 2017 advance to the Class 4A state championship game against Karr in the Caesars Superdome. Lakeshore also earned a No. 1 seed in 2019 following an undefeated regular season culminated by an advance to the state semifinals and a loss to Warren Easton.

“We love Coach Jones and the whole coaching staff,’’ Sheppard said. “Obviously, he’s a great coach. He had a great tenure at Lakeshore. Now he’s come over here and turned the program around and done the same thing. Then in (his) year two to go to the semifinals, not many coaches are able to do that and establish that as a team. And now we’re doing even better.’’

The Skippers are rolling, bursting at the seams seemingly with achievements. The team’s 6-0 start was punctuated by a stirring 35-33 victory against arch-rival Covington last week at Theriot Stadium in each team’s District 6-5A opener.

Mandeville running back Nate Sheppard (No. 20) rushed 29 times for 257 yards and two touchdowns in the Skippers’ District 6-5A victory against Covington on Oct. 11. Photo Courtesy: Joe Trombatore / Mandeville High School

Sheppard rushed 29 times for 257 yards and two touchdowns covering 53 and 59 yards, one week after posting a Herculean number of 306 rushing yards and four touchdowns on just 15 carries in a 42-0 victory at Northshore that included scoring runs of 80, 3, 81 and 25 yards.

This all followed a September to remember that resulted in Sheppard’s second selection as the prestigious Allstate Sugar Bowl Amateur Athlete of the Month.

“I definitely would say from a team perspective that (the standout game so far) definitely was the win over Covington,’’ Sheppard said. “We finally had a game where we had to battle some adversity and things not going our way and us not blowing (the opponent) out in the first half. So that definitely was the best team win.

“And I’d say personally for me (the single-game touchdown record) was just something I’ve been wanting to do since I tied my brother’s record. Breaking the touchdown record here at Mandeville High against Slidell with seven touchdowns, that was probably the biggest personal game for me.’’

“Nate is very, very patient’’ as a runner, Jones said. “It’s almost like he glides a little bit. Then he has outstanding vision, so when he sees the hole or the hole about to develop, he’s got an acceleration that few have. But he kind of glides and then he’s gone.’’

Blessed with the aforementioned “ability to be a game-breaker in space,’’ according to Jones, Mandeville’s coach further said, “As a punt returner, if you give Nate the ball in space, he’s dynamic with his vision. He’s very good in breaking tackles. He’s got great ball skills when he’s out there as a receiver.

“Now, Nate is a running back, so don’t get me wrong. But Duke and (Mandeville football) are fortunate for the same reason in that they have some luxury to do some things with him more than just have him back there as a running back.’’

All of this, and remember, as Jones is quick to remind that, “Nate doesn’t come off the field. He’s our starting free safety. He’s our returner on all of the return units. Unless he wants to come off of the field and taps because he’s tired, he doesn’t come off of the field. He’s good.’’

Sheppard conscientiously prepared for this full-tilt, gladiator-like existence during the past offseason and summer in his training.

“Part of his mindset going into the season was to get himself physically ready to be able to do that,’’ Jones said. “Nate had a mindset that that’s what we did on the back end of (last) year when we made our run during the playoffs. We moved him to free safety and we had him on the field on both sides of the ball.

“Then his whole mindset during the offseason was he wanted to do that for the entire season and his preparation has allowed him to withstand 120-something snaps a ballgame.’’

“I prepared my body over the summer and over the offseason to be able to do this,’’ Sheppard said. “Because I knew what I was going to have do this season, to have to play both ways just to help my team in as many ways as possible. So I prepared my body conditioning-wise physically to take those hits and still be able to get back up and still be able to do everything 100 percent.

“So it’s really not that bad after all of the hard work has been done, basically.’’ The training, Sheppard said, was “nothing crazy. Just doing the regular stuff, just lifting weights and making sure I’m out there running every day, getting my conditioning up. Just doing the basic stuff of getting ready for the season.’’

This past summer proved eventful as well when in late August he committed to play running back at Duke for Coach Manny Diaz. A full academic qualifier with a weighted 4.3-grade point average and a score of 29 on the ACT, Sheppard chose the Blue Devils of the Atlantic Coast Conference from a list of five finalists that included Tulane, California, Cincinnati, and Northwestern of the Big 10.

In addition to a 4.43 clocking in a laser-time 40-yard dash recorded during the summer, Sheppard bench presses 300 pounds, squats 505 and power cleans 305. Sheppard said he currently plans to major in Kinesiology in Durham with an eye toward working in Sports Science and/or Physical Therapy.

Duke, Tulane, and Cal were his final three choices, Sheppard said, with the choice in programs basically boiling down to Duke being a successful Power Four conference member guaranteed a shot to advance to the College Football Playoffs.

“One hundred percent committed to Duke,’’ Sheppard said without hesitation when asked about his nearly two-month-old verbal pledge. Not that his other suitors have given up the ghost and stopped calling.

“I still talk to a lot of the coaches to this day,’’ Sheppard said referring primarily to his five finalists. “They still try to get me to flip. But I’ve been real locked in really with our football season. That’s why I got my commitment out of the way before the season started just so I can focus in on our season and what we do as a team. But I’m locked into Duke.’’

LSU really never entered the picture for reasons unknown to Sheppard. “I talked to them a little bit, but I guess they just wanted to go in a different direction,’’ Sheppard said. “I don’t really know (why). There was no offer. Nothing like that.’’

As for Duke versus Tulane, Cal, Cincinnati, and Northwestern, Sheppard’s relationship with the Blue Devils originated under former coach Mike Elko, who’s now at Texas A&M, and intensified under Diaz and his staff.

“Obviously, their program starting with Coach Elko before Coach Diaz, they’ve been on the up-rise the last couple of years. And I believe in what Coach Diaz is preaching and what he is coaching up there. The running back coach, Coach Willie Simmons, obviously is one of the best coaches coming from the HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) game. So to be able to be coached by them was a real big deciding factor for (going with Duke).’’

Regarding Tulane’s unsuccessful bid, Sheppard said, “There were a couple of big factors. Obviously, they are not a Power 4 school right now, so that was really one of the big ones. They’ve been winning the last couple of years and I believe Coach (Jon) Sumrall coming in is going to do the same thing. But it really was the Power 4 thing. They’re not in those conferences yet. So that really was the main thing.’’

Jones credits Sheppard’s parents, father Willie and mother Rebekah Boyd, two former Division I college athletes themselves at Louisiana Tech, for assisting their son in what proved to be a smooth selection process. Willie Sheppard was a running back and Boyd was a right side hitter in volleyball at Tech.

Older brother Will, a wide receiver at Mandeville, additionally had gone through the recruiting process a few years earlier prior to signing with Vanderbilt. Will currently is playing a fifth season as a wide receiver at Colorado after transferring from Vandy where he played for four years and earned a bachelor’s degree.

“Of all the kids that I’ve been around as far as going through the process, Nate was the most diligent with it,’’ Jones said. “I think it helped him that both mom and dad were (Division I) athletes. His brother (Will) went through (recruiting) as a D-I athlete.

“They really took their time and looked at every school that they were serious about and took their trips before he made his decision of what he wanted to do. So I thought they did a very good job of being as detailed as they could before he made the decision.’’

In regards to Nate’s potential at the next level, Jones is effusive.

Jones points out that Nate actually earned his first Division I offer following the second game of his sophomore season. Vanderbilt’s offer to the then 16-year-old followed a 42-41 loss at Hahnville that marked the first time Sheppard equaled the Skippers’ single-game record of six touchdowns.

“I think the sky’s the limit for him,’’ Jones said. “Because he’s got some innate abilities that you just can’t teach. His football IQ, his ability to take care of the ball, eat up pursuit angles. Basically, they are things you just can’t teach. He has a unique ability to do what the guys who are successful at the next level do. They have those things. Nate is impressive in all of those things.’’

“We have a lot of zone reads over here (at Mandeville), so I’d say I’m very patient in waiting for the hole to open up,’’ Nate Sheppard said of his strengths as a running back. “I have the quickness to be able to hit those holes as fast as possible once they open up. I’d say that’s a very big part of my game.

“In open space, I’m very fluid and very efficient in my cuts and everything I’m doing. So I’d say I’m more of an elusive type of runner. If I had to give a comp, it would be more like a (Alvin) Kamara (of the Saints), slash, Jahmyr Gibbs (of the Detroit Lions) style than a big power back.

“Just having that burst, having that ability to cut on a dime once you see the hole and get through that hole as quick as possible and get up to that second level, that’s something I feel like I’m able to do very well.’’

The Skippers are counting on Sheppard’s running prowess, special teams contributions, and defensive impact as they move into the stretch drive for a second consecutive state playoff berth.

Though presently unranked in Class 5A state rankings compiled by geauxpreps.com and the Louisiana Sports Writers Association, Mandeville has cracked the GeauxPreps.com power ratings for Division I Non-Select schools that determine playoff seedings.

The Skippers carry a No. 6 power rating, trailing only No. 1 Ruston (6-0), No. 2 Central-Baton Rouge (6-0), No. 3 Neville (6-0), No. 4 Airline (6-0) and No. 5 Parkway (5-1) in those rankings.

Mandeville (6-0 overall, 1-0 in District 6-5A) plays host to Hammond (4-2, 0-1) at 7 p.m. Friday before playing at Ponchatoula (2-4, 0-0) in week eight and then returning home to face St. Paul’s (4-2, 1-0) prior to closing the regular season in a non-district tilt at former district rival Fontainebleau (3-3, 0-1 in District 7-5A).

“I think the sky’s the limit with these guys,’’ Coach Jones said of Sheppard and the Skippers. “We’ve got a number of guys who are three-year returning starters along with Nate. We started a bunch of sophomores my first year. Obviously, there are a lot of keys. You’ve got to always stay healthy and all those (other) things you’ve got to do.

“But, our goal, we talk about a state championship. We don’t shy away from it. That’s our goal. I think this team, if we’re able to stay healthy, we can be in the mix.’’

Or put another way, if the Skippers can continue to “Seas the Day!’’