Gators' Justin Shorter Talks Personal Growth, Unique Bond With Grimes

Florida Gators receivers Justin Shorter and Trevon Grimes share a unique bond, and Shorter's work ethic is showcased each and every day.

Photo credit: University of Florida Athletics Association

For Florida Gators wide receiver Justin Shorter, playing on the same team as fellow receiver Trevon Grimes is a dream come true.

Though the two are just one year apart, Grimes part of the 2017 recruiting class and Shorter '18, in eighth grade the younger Gators receiver used to watch Grimes' highlights on YouTube, striving to model his game after the high-school standout. Now, the two are teammates, able to learn from each other, and form the bond Shorter has always envisioned.

"It’s been great every single day of practice, because I was looking up to (Grimes) since I was literally in eighth grade," Shorter told members of the Florida media on Monday.

"I can promise you guys, I remember watching YouTube videos on him, undergrad spotlights and all this stuff, and then finally being able to come here and I’m like 'Wow, Trevon Grimes is actually at my position, he’s playing with me.'

"So I’ve just been trying to learn every single detail from him back there so I can just better myself, and it’s been paying off."

It has been paying off. While Shorter transferred from Penn State prior to this year's COVID-centric offseason filled with uncertainty, he's quickly adapted, becoming a key contributor within the Gators offense this year. Thus far, Shorter has caught 11 passes for 101 yards and three touchdowns - one in each of the last three weeks.

At 6-foot-5, 225 pounds, it's easy to see why Shorter likens himself to Grimes, 6-4, 218 pounds, so much. The two essentially have the same body type, able to become the red zone weapons Florida's offense has striven to use the entire season.

The two have since become inseparable, with Shorter making one-off predictions on touchdowns each would have in games shortly prior to the game beginning. From FaceTime to video games, the relationship between the big receivers has grown as the season has progressed, and they feed off of each other in practice, too.

"We were just out there warming up and then I’d be like, 'Hey, we need twos today.' So that way, (Trevon Grimes) gets two and I get two. Last game, I didn’t fulfill my two, but hopefully this week we can go out there and get two in."

Florida's Justin Shorter hauls in epic TD catch ✋ pic.twitter.com/KD26CmEUUo

— ESPN Player (@espnplayer) November 17, 2020

Grimes was penalized for running onto the field following Shorter's phenomenal catch on Saturday, but he wouldn't have it any other way, seeing his teammate and friend have so much success brings out just that much joy.

"I seen his touchdown and I ran up and I'm just like, 'Yo that's an amazing catch.' ... I didn't have my helmet on but the first thing I think was to run down there and congratulate him, 'cause I know how exciting it was and how good of a catch it was," Grimes said on Monday.

Shorter has become one of the key members of the Florida receiving corp, and its taken a lot of hard work during such a crazy offseason for him to get where he is today. Transferring from Penn State as a former five-star recruit in the midst of a pandemic hasn't always been easy, but Shorter has made it work and a lot of the credit goes to Florida quarterback Kyle Trask, "a great guy," he said of his quarterback.

"It was definitely a challenge, but I was definitely up for the challenge. I knew basically coming in here I would have to learn that playbook quick if I wanted to make an impact quick," said Shorter. "So, literally the day I got here, me and [Kyle] Trask, we sat down and were going over plays, going over every single thing.

"I was watching film all night long just to trying to get the playbook down. That first day of camp, I was able to get everything down, and I was able to show the coaches who I was as a player and how smart I was on the field."

Shorter has always possessed the work ethic required to put his best foot forward on game days.

"Ever since I was in eighth grade and ninth, I started playing football, me and my dad. And my dad has instilled that with hard work, you can do anything you want, and I just really take that to heart," he said.

"I’ll get up before practice, stay after practice. During practice, I’ll catch a ball and sprint 10 yards, full speed. I just go hard all the time and work my hardest because I believe that the more work I put in, the more I’m going to get out."

While he has had plenty of time to practice, staying after and putting work in prior, Shorter has always had family members to help him prepare for the rigors of a football season, striving to get better each and every day.

Although his father was instrumental in his success for many years, he's a self-admitted "mama's boy", and he's worked with his mom every single day, besides gamedays, to get better since his transfer - even during the pandemic.

“Really ever since I had started playing football, I promise you guys I have caught over 100 balls every single day, except for maybe like Sundays," Shorter says.

"I’d say that even back during the week my mom, she stays down here with me, and she would be coming to my dorm like for 30 minutes before practice. Like say we were practicing at 4, she came like 3:25 and we caught like 200 balls and then I’d go to practice. It’s just small stuff like that which really just makes it just second nature."

Shorter's mom made the move to Gainesville shortly after her son transferred to UF this year. Being close to family was a big deal for both his mom and Justin himself, and it's paying off. Throwing footballs with his mom prior to practice every day, who, according to Shorter "has a cannon," has been beneficial and showcases his work ethic and likely the reason he's received the number of repetitions he has in recent weeks.

"Like she picks me up from practice. It just makes her happy and makes me happy that she’s here supporting me.”

For now, Shorter will continue working hard each and every day before, after and during practice to get better, becoming the receiver Florida and its staff knows he can be. Grimes certainly believes in him.

"Like I said, he's a phenomenal player, phenomenal catch, and that's just a small thing of what he can do. His catch radius is crazy, so, he's a phenomenal receiver, and his catch was pretty fire."