Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Netflix special “Titletown High” helped get receiver Javonte Sherman on the radar for Middle Tennessee
8/10/2023 5:00:00 PM | Football
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Over the past few years, some of the best Netflix specials have surrounded the game of football. Probably the best known example is Last Chance U, which followed junior college football and the struggle for those players to return to or get to prominence in the college football landscape.
One more recent example is the docuseries Quarterback that follows the 2022 seasons of Patrick Mahomes, Kirk Cousins and Marcus Mariota, giving a great glimpse into the personal lives of three very different styles of quarterbacks, both on and off the field.
Lots of people, especially here in the southeastern United States, are attached to high school football, however. Many are of the opinion that the high school game is football in its purest form, especially in small towns. For current Blue Raider receiver Javonte Sherman, his 2020 season showed just that in the Netflix show Titletown High, which featured Sherman and the Valdosta Wildcats, who were coached that year by legendary high school coach Rush Propst.
"When they first told us we were going to be on Netflix, I was surprised and didn't really believe it," Sherman said. "It's Netflix. That doesn't happen every day. I just felt like it'd be a great experience for me as an athlete."
For Sherman, he was projected to be the top receiver on the team going into the season, especially following a junior year where the slender receiver led the team in catches, yards and touchdowns.
When the cameras kicked on, Sherman viewed the show as an opportunity to further showcase his skills on the field and show just how hard players must work off it. Much of the show portrays Sherman's on-field success didn't take long to be put on display, as quarterback Amari Jones, who started the season for the Wildcats, once again hooked up with Sherman to form a dangerous one-two combo that Valdosta could lean on in the passing game. With Sherman's 6-foot-3 frame, he possessed the height to go up and make big catches while his footwork made him deadly with the ball in his hands after the catch and one of the best route runners in the state of Georgia.
"I knew I was going to play a bigger role because I was one of the top recruited athletes on the team," Sherman said. "Knowing what comes with recruiting, I knew it'd be good exposure because of Netflix. Valdosta takes a lot of pride in football. Playing at Valdosta was every kid's dream in that town. Being able to do that and get the exposure with the success was a blessing."
Though things worked out great for Sherman, personally, both on the field and on the show, some of his teammates and several of the storylines were filled with drama that could've easily affected Sherman.
Of course, getting the chance to play for Rush Propst was an experience in itself. Sherman took the opportunity to pick his brain and get better and made real strides from becoming a successful high school wideout to a division-one ready talent.
Part of the development for Sherman came from catching passes from Wildcat veteran quarterback Amari Jones, but also transfer Jake Garcia who took over and helped Valdosta get back on track in the middle part of the year after starting the season 1-4 against some of the best schools in the state of Georgia.
With Jones being more of a dual-threat guy and Garcia being a pocket passer, of course as a wideout you may have to adjust your own game a bit to favor the playing style of the quarterback who's on the field. Largely because of Sherman's head-down, work-hard approach, it made the little things come easy and take care of themselves to where all he had to do was develop that chemistry with the two of them to help both succeed.
"Playing with Amari (Jones) and Jake (Garcia) showed me that honestly two can be better than one," Sherman said. "Playing for two different types of quarterbacks gave me a chance to showcase being a complete receiver. It helps me today at MTSU because our quarterback room is very similar, so it makes it to where all I have to do is just make sure I have that tight bond with them."
Originally committed to East Carolina University through much of the show, Sherman found himself at a crossroads when the Pirates had a coaching change midway through the year. That's when current quarterbacks coach and former receivers coach Brent Stockstill and the Blue Raiders swooped back in.
Middle Tennessee had always shown an interest in Sherman, but the way he handled himself through the show and how successful he was both on and off the field, Sherman proved to be an effective leader within a group that could've easily given up after a slow start and helped the team finish out the season with a winning record amid some of the drama surrounding the team.
"The show helped me with my leadership skills," Sherman said. "I was really trying hard to stay healthy and have a great year, and having that pressure helped motivate me and made it better than my junior year. I really like that it was a reality show about football, because it's huge to show people how much we have to struggle off the field to get the success you see on the field."
Over his short time at Middle Tennessee thus far, Sherman has worked hard to add muscle and build that same chemistry with the current Blue Raider quarterback room. Sherman has shown he can be just as reliable a target as he was at Valdosta.
"Not just being on the show, but being at Valdosta in general was a blessing," Sherman said. "They didn't hold anything back just because of the show. They taught me a lot and helped me develop as a player and a person, so it's helped a lot since I've gotten (to MTSU)."
While "the Shermanator," as he's affectionately known by his teammates, still hasn't locked up a starting wide receiver role, his time at Titletown High has put number 13 on the radar of the Middle Tennessee coaching staff to potentially become one of the top pass-catchers in offensive coordinator Mitch Stewart's offense in 2023.
One more recent example is the docuseries Quarterback that follows the 2022 seasons of Patrick Mahomes, Kirk Cousins and Marcus Mariota, giving a great glimpse into the personal lives of three very different styles of quarterbacks, both on and off the field.
Lots of people, especially here in the southeastern United States, are attached to high school football, however. Many are of the opinion that the high school game is football in its purest form, especially in small towns. For current Blue Raider receiver Javonte Sherman, his 2020 season showed just that in the Netflix show Titletown High, which featured Sherman and the Valdosta Wildcats, who were coached that year by legendary high school coach Rush Propst.
"When they first told us we were going to be on Netflix, I was surprised and didn't really believe it," Sherman said. "It's Netflix. That doesn't happen every day. I just felt like it'd be a great experience for me as an athlete."
For Sherman, he was projected to be the top receiver on the team going into the season, especially following a junior year where the slender receiver led the team in catches, yards and touchdowns.
When the cameras kicked on, Sherman viewed the show as an opportunity to further showcase his skills on the field and show just how hard players must work off it. Much of the show portrays Sherman's on-field success didn't take long to be put on display, as quarterback Amari Jones, who started the season for the Wildcats, once again hooked up with Sherman to form a dangerous one-two combo that Valdosta could lean on in the passing game. With Sherman's 6-foot-3 frame, he possessed the height to go up and make big catches while his footwork made him deadly with the ball in his hands after the catch and one of the best route runners in the state of Georgia.
"I knew I was going to play a bigger role because I was one of the top recruited athletes on the team," Sherman said. "Knowing what comes with recruiting, I knew it'd be good exposure because of Netflix. Valdosta takes a lot of pride in football. Playing at Valdosta was every kid's dream in that town. Being able to do that and get the exposure with the success was a blessing."
Though things worked out great for Sherman, personally, both on the field and on the show, some of his teammates and several of the storylines were filled with drama that could've easily affected Sherman.
Of course, getting the chance to play for Rush Propst was an experience in itself. Sherman took the opportunity to pick his brain and get better and made real strides from becoming a successful high school wideout to a division-one ready talent.
Part of the development for Sherman came from catching passes from Wildcat veteran quarterback Amari Jones, but also transfer Jake Garcia who took over and helped Valdosta get back on track in the middle part of the year after starting the season 1-4 against some of the best schools in the state of Georgia.
With Jones being more of a dual-threat guy and Garcia being a pocket passer, of course as a wideout you may have to adjust your own game a bit to favor the playing style of the quarterback who's on the field. Largely because of Sherman's head-down, work-hard approach, it made the little things come easy and take care of themselves to where all he had to do was develop that chemistry with the two of them to help both succeed.
"Playing with Amari (Jones) and Jake (Garcia) showed me that honestly two can be better than one," Sherman said. "Playing for two different types of quarterbacks gave me a chance to showcase being a complete receiver. It helps me today at MTSU because our quarterback room is very similar, so it makes it to where all I have to do is just make sure I have that tight bond with them."
Originally committed to East Carolina University through much of the show, Sherman found himself at a crossroads when the Pirates had a coaching change midway through the year. That's when current quarterbacks coach and former receivers coach Brent Stockstill and the Blue Raiders swooped back in.
Middle Tennessee had always shown an interest in Sherman, but the way he handled himself through the show and how successful he was both on and off the field, Sherman proved to be an effective leader within a group that could've easily given up after a slow start and helped the team finish out the season with a winning record amid some of the drama surrounding the team.
"The show helped me with my leadership skills," Sherman said. "I was really trying hard to stay healthy and have a great year, and having that pressure helped motivate me and made it better than my junior year. I really like that it was a reality show about football, because it's huge to show people how much we have to struggle off the field to get the success you see on the field."
Over his short time at Middle Tennessee thus far, Sherman has worked hard to add muscle and build that same chemistry with the current Blue Raider quarterback room. Sherman has shown he can be just as reliable a target as he was at Valdosta.
"Not just being on the show, but being at Valdosta in general was a blessing," Sherman said. "They didn't hold anything back just because of the show. They taught me a lot and helped me develop as a player and a person, so it's helped a lot since I've gotten (to MTSU)."
While "the Shermanator," as he's affectionately known by his teammates, still hasn't locked up a starting wide receiver role, his time at Titletown High has put number 13 on the radar of the Middle Tennessee coaching staff to potentially become one of the top pass-catchers in offensive coordinator Mitch Stewart's offense in 2023.
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