Jason Shosho had not played one down of football when he showed up for the first day of Revere High School football practices in the ninth grade.
“I regret never being able to play Pop Warner football,†said Shosho, who will graduate from RHS in June. “Pop Warner had weight limits and I was a little bit heavier as a kid. I was glad to have the opportunity to play football in my freshman year in high school.â€
Shosho demonstrated his athletic talents and leadership skills from the outset, earning a captaincy of the freshman team and a promotion to the junior varsity during the 2019 season.
The 2020 football season was heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, with Shosho’s sophomore year being reduced to a four-game schedule in the spring of 2021.
Coach Lou Cicatelli, whom Shosho credits for his development as a football player and a team leader, decided to make the rising junior a two-way starter for the 2021 fall season.
Shosho, who is 5-foot-10 and weighed 220 pounds during his football career, excelled in that campaign at offensive guard and defensive tackle. As a senior, Shosho became a team captain, Revere’s leading tackler, and one of the best all-around players in the Greater Boston League, earning All-State honors in Division 3. He has also been selected to play in the Shriners All-Star Classic and the Harry Agganis All-Star Football Game in June.
In the classroom, Shosho’s achievements were noteworthy. One of the top-5 students academically in the RHS Class of 2023, Shosho has been accepted to Yale University and will attend the prestigious Ivy League school in the fall.
Cicatelli said he’s excited about Shosho’s decision to attend Yale.
“I’m just a very proud football coach,†said Cicatelli. “Jason is one of the hardest workers ever playing four years of football in our program. I watched Jason evolve from a young kid to a young man. He became a superb leader and a team captain. He put so much hard work, time, and effort in the weight room and all of the off-season workouts. He had a tremendous work ethic just as he has had in the classroom. He’s a very smart kid and what he’s done as a Revere High School student-athlete, it’s just so impressive. He’s going to Yale, and I mean, what’s better than that? I feel Yale is very lucky to have this young man.â€
His Roots are in Albania
Jason is the son of Genti and Entela Shosho, who emigrated from Albania to the United States in 2001. Jason has twin 25-year-old brothers, Dhimiter Shosho and Florens Shosho who also played football at Revere High School. Dhimiter studied computer engineering at UMass Amherst while Florens studied computer science at UMass Lowell. Both are excelling in their professional careers.
“My brothers have been great role models for me, and my parents have worked hard their whole lives, so we could pursue our goals,†said Jason.
Proud to be a Football Patriot
Jason Shosho said one of the highlights of his career was his team’s victory over Winthrop in the annual Thanksgiving game in his junior season.
“We were down by six points at the half and came back and won (16-13),†recalled Shosho. “That was a really great game.â€
There were high expectations for his senior year, but injuries decimated the roster.
“Our team really got hit by the injury bug this year, which was very unfortunate because we were really looking forward to being a top contender in the GBL,†said Shosho.
Shosho served as a captain alongside Max Doucette, Davi Barreto, and Sami Elasri for the 2022 Patriots.
“Sami was our Ironman champion,†credited Shosho about the winner of the team’s annual competition. “As a junior, I called myself the king of the tire, which is the tire-flip competition, but this year, Sami ended up beating me in that event, so there’s a lot of competitiveness there. Sami is an all-around great athlete.â€
Shosho also noted the motivational friendship he enjoyed with Doucette, an excellent player whose senior season was hampered by injuries.
“I have to give a shoutout to Max Doucette,†said Shosho. “Outside of school, he kept me motivated, training with each other and holding each other accountable.â€
Reflecting on the positive influence and guidance of Lou Cicatelli in his life, Shosho said, “Coach Cic is a huge mentor for me. He pushed me to get better ever since I was a freshman in the weight room. He always had high expectations for me, which I do appreciate. But even off the field, he’s been a great role model. I know that if I ever need advice or help with my personal life, his door is always open, and I’m grateful for that.â€
A Strong Education Sets the Foundation
Jason Shosho attended the AC Whelan and Susan B. Anthony Schools before entering Revere High School.
He took several advanced placement (AP) classes at Revere High School.
“I had so many outstanding teachers,†said Shosho. “Ms. [Erin] Cronin, Mr. [Christopher] Kingston, and others played a big role in helping me become a good student and educating me.â€
A member of the National Honor Society, Shosho, in his senior year, began to focus on engineering as a likely field of study in college.
“I applied to some in-state schools, and I was looking at some really great engineering programs out of state such as Yale, which was the furthest school from Revere that I applied to,†said Shosho. “I’m just grateful to be able to attend Yale. I visited Yale in April and it has a very nice campus. I met some engineering students. I’m thinking about double majoring in electrical engineering and aerospace engineering.â€
Shosho said he hasn’t decided about whether he will be a candidate for the Yale football team.
Shosho will always be able to look back at his Revere High football career for being a scholar-athlete and an excellent example for the underclassmen in the program.