Big Red Spotlight with Ty Short

Image: Cornell Athletics

On this release of Big Red Spotlight, we have Ty Short! Ty is a Senior studying Communications. He is from San Antonio, Texas, and is a Left Guard on the football team.

Camille Watson: Thank you for taking the time to answer some of my questions! Tell me a little bit about yourself.

Ty Short: “My name is Ty Short, I’m from San Antonio, Texas, and I play Left Guard for the Cornell Football team. I am also a communications major.”

CW: What made you choose to play football?

TS: “Football was always just super important to my family…my dad's side of the family is from Cleveland, where I was born, so we’ve had a lot of Cleveland sports pride watching Browns games every weekend, watching Ohio State games every Saturday. It was really important to my grandparents, especially because my Grandfather was the chaplain for the Cleveland Browns.”

CW: How is football here different from Texas?

TS: “Audience-wise at Cornell, in San Antonio, even though I went to a tiny private Catholic school, it felt like the whole city was there at games, just like tons of people, probably more than we get here. The weather is big, too. I was used to playing in 100-degree heat my whole life, and now I'm playing in freezing temperatures–which is fun. I like playing football in the cold.”

CW: What was your recruitment process like?

TS: “Funny story, Cornell was not in the cards for me at first. I went to this training camp at Trinity and all the Ivy Leagues went… my Dad said I had to talk to the Cornell coach so I talked to Coach Bhakta and after that I fell in love with the coaching staff, the campus, the people, and I pretty much committed right away…my dad was the catalyst for me coming up here, so I’m always grateful for that.”

CW: What’s your favorite part of your position?

TS: “The guys I’m there with…I like the idea that I have to have good chemistry with the guy to my right and left, it's good for developing trust. For most people, trust can vary, but I have to trust that Kevin Ma will block his guy because if not, I’m gonna get obliterated and put on the ground…. that's a good concept and it’s brought me a lot closer with my position group.”

CW: What’s the best game you’ve ever played in, Cornell or in high school?

TS: “Honestly, I would probably have to say Brown, the game we just played, that was awesome…I feel like when offense was needed most, we stepped up and delivered…the feeling of being with the guys and the coaches after they blew that final whistle…there was nothing like it… such a cool experience.”

CW: What is your favorite thing about your hometown?

TS: “Probably the most O-Line answer is food. Besides the food, I like that it’s spread out…I love driving in San Antonio…I met a lot of diverse groups of people growing up, and I’m excited to go back after college.”

CW: What is your favorite thing about Ithaca?

TS: “I like the weather. I honestly like the cold…I like dressing for the cold, and I like playing football in the cold. There are pros and cons…you’re less tired in the cold; however, you do get tighter…this past game I had some guys making fun of me because I got on the bike on the sidelines…usually you only see skill position guys doing that to stay warm, but I was trying to stay warm and they said I was too big to be on the bike.”

CW: If you had to go on a road trip with three of your teammates, who would you choose?

TS: “I would probably choose James Reinbold, Logan Taylor, and Sean Polinsky…we’re a nice little squad…It would be cool to go from Ithaca down to Port Aransas…you can go through a lot of cities, maybe we could stop in Nashville. Port A is great, and we’d get to go to the beach. We could also start from Anchorage, though, for James.”

CW: What is your favorite NFL team, and who is your favorite player?

TS: “The Cleveland Browns have always been my favorite team… It's hard for me not to say Myles Garrett, he's so dominant and fun to watch. O-Line-wise, Joel Bitonio is one of our guards, and I’ve always loved him…he’s a veteran, always consistently good, and very fun to watch.”

CW: If you could be drafted to a Team, would it be the Browns or someone else?

TS: “It would be a dream to play for the Browns, but it would also be cool to play in the South…but I hate the Cowboys. It would be cool blocking for CJ Stroud because he went to Ohio State.”

Image: Cornell Athletics

CW: What is something people would have never been able to guess about you?

TS: After thinking for a while and consulting his roommate, Logan, and girlfriend Tori, Ty decided that he’s “pretty geeky…theres a lot of media I watch like Star Wars and Marvel…if it comes up in conversation in the locker room, I’ll start weighing in and people will be like you know way too much about this topic” He also likes matcha, specifically from Paris Baguette and Bus Stop Bagels.

CW: What are a couple of hobbies you have that are not related to your sport?

TS: “Again, probably a very O-Line answer, but I really like cooking. My roommates will probably tell you it gets a little frustrating because sometimes there's a lot of smoke in the kitchen. I like to try new recipes and such, I think that's a lot of fun…I like eating as well…I like traveling–especially with my family…we try and get together, sometimes we’ll fly to Atlanta, or last year we went to Vegas for my birthday with Tori. We also try and get to Port Aransas whenever we can; it’s very comfortable. I do like visiting Cleveland, too, for the Browns game, and we went to Rome a couple of years ago.”

CW: What are some of your favorite movies?

TS: “I’ve always loved Jaws. Growing up, that was one of my favorites. All the Star Wars movies, like The Empire Strikes Back…I’ve seen that movie like 100 times. Anything Quentin Tarantino, like Django…I have that whole movie memorized, I think I’ve seen it more than any movie ever….I like a lot of Marvel movies too, like Deadpool.”

CW: If you had to switch a day with your teammate, like a Freaky Friday, who would it be?

TS: “It would be fun to be a QB, but I would really want to be fast for a day. Maybe Devon Kayser…I want to know what it feels like to be able to run that fast…just like a day in the life apart from football, maybe Logan Taylor…It would be cool to see the world from the foot lower and be fast…it would be super cool to eat whatever I want and still be 1% body fat…Then I could also see how hard his major really is.”

CW: What is something on your bucket list?

TS: “I want to go to a Browns Super Bowl. I probably won’t see it in my lifetime, but every year my family establishes that if the Browns are ever doing decent, my family’s always like, “Okay, we’re getting tickets…that would be awesome.”

CW: Do you have a favorite place you’ve been to?

TS: “Port Aransas is convenient and comfortable. I do like visiting Cleveland and going to Browns Games. I also went to Rome a few summers ago, and the food was very nice.”

CW: Who are your top 3 music artists?

TS: “I would definitely say The Eagles…I’ve been listening to a lot of Laufey recently…and then probably Jon Pardi.”

Image: Cornell Athletics

CW: Do you have a specific pregame ritual? Do you have any superstitions?

TS: “I have a lot of superstitions dating back to high school…I’ve had so many…and then after we beat Bucknell, I’ve added a lot more. Before a game, I have to drink a gallon with three electrolyte packets in it throughout the day. My biggest one, I have to listen to ‘Last Christmas’ by WHAM…if you remember Hunter Sloan, he’s the one who put me onto listening to it before games when you’re warming up on the field. It just mellows me out, but it's also upbeat enough. I have to listen to that before every game on repeat.. I also have to listen to ‘Bad, Bad, Bad’ by Young Thug and Lil Baby… I have to get taped by Ms. Kathy…if I’m not taped by her, something bad is gonna happen…and then after we beat Bucknell, I now have to wear the same compression shirt as I did then. I also have to write stuff on my wrist tape, like important names and such.”

CW: What’s the best thing to eat post-game and pre-game?

TS: “Pregame, I don't like to eat a lot, maybe a banana, and a few bits of the Statler home fries. They also give us Honey Stinger wafers before games. After a game, depending on where but it’s nice to get a steak or any red meat for recovery.”

CW: Is there a life motto you go by or any sayings that stick in your head?

TS: “My grandma used to always tell me ‘Give your smile away’, and I think that's cute, so I try and be upbeat as much as I can, even if we're losing and it's hard, I try and lift people as best I can since everything else is out of my control.”

CW: What is something that you can’t live without?

TS: “It may be cliché, but I don’t think I could live without football. In one form or another, playing or watching, it’s the ‘meat and potatoes’ of every conversation I have; it’s always some part of it. If it’s not about the game, it’s ‘what are you gonna do after football,’ and then after that, maybe my phone, the boys, and Tori.”

CW: Lastly, what is something you are grateful for in general, and something you are grateful for at Cornell?

TS: “In general, I’d say my size, my parents gave me the blessing of height, so I can have the opportunity to have this experience and meet all the guys. I’m grateful that my parents are so supportive…they come to all my games, and my dad really pushed for me to get here. About Cornell, I’d say my teammates. I’ve been so blessed; I had very welcoming teammates, especially James, my freshman year. I have a great group of guys to go out there with and spend all my time with.”

Thank you to Ty for joining us, and thank you for reading and supporting BRSN. Be sure to check out other written pieces, and stay tuned for the next edition of Big Red Spotlight soon!