By Joseph DiCristofaro
The Ironton Tribune

Despite moving over eight hours away in a year to pursue athletics, Ironton High School football standout Shaun Terry will still be a Tiger, only this time donned in black and gold.
Terry announced on June 20 via X (formerly Twitter) that he would be taking his talents to the University of Missouri to continue his football career following his graduation in 2025. Before his commitment to Missouri, Terry was committed to the University of Notre Dame.

“I wanted to go to a school where I’m needed, not wanted. I wanted to go somewhere that felt like a family the entire time. Mizzou felt like a second family to me,” Terry said. “I could go there and not want to come home. A lot of players get homesick; I know if I go somewhere around people that I love I won’t want to come home.”
The family-like feel at Missouri is what grabbed Terry’s attention, but something else is making him excited to show the Tiger fans why he chose to come to Columbia, Missouri.
“They haven’t won a national championship; we are the class that is about to be there and we’re chasing something that is going to be great,” Terry said. “We want to make history at Mizzou, that’s the most exciting part about it.”
The pressures of recruiting can be felt by many young student-athletes, but Ironton Football Head Coach Trevon Pendleton gave him plenty of advice to guide him through the important journey.
“Have adult conversations. I think many kids shy away from that,” Pendleton said. “And they lose that personability that helps them carry on conversations with people and look them in the eyes.”
Pendleton was once in Terry’s shoes. As a young man playing for Portsmouth West High School deciding where to attend college as a student-athlete, Pendleton ultimately decided on Michigan State where he won the 2013 Rose Bowl.
Since Pendleton’s time on the gridiron, the world of college athletics has changed vastly due to the transfer portal and many other factors.
“Recruiting has slowed down because they’re having to re-recruit their own athletes due to the transfer portal, and name, image and likeness (NIL),” Pendleton said. “Shaun has been very fortunate and blessed that his hasn’t.”
The advice that Terry’s coach gave him will last a lifetime and has already helped him grow both as a man and an athlete.
“Having those man-to-man conversations, I grew a lot with communication,” Terry said. “To make that phone call to Notre Dame was hard to do but it was supposed to happen. I feel like I grew so much as a person.”
Terry has not let the attention from some very notable Division I programs change him or the way he conducts himself.
“I’m blessed to be in this situation. I remember where I come from and don’t let it get the best of me,” Terry said. “I stayed with my team the entire time; they kept me down to earth. I keep doing what I did before all the offers came.”
Despite dozens of games, touchdowns and countless memories Terry described one of his favorite memories that occurred during his early years at Ironton.
“My best memory was my sophomore year playing against Coal Grove,” Terry said. “I had three touchdowns in the first half and no one really knew who I was.”