TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL: Thomasville High School’s Cole Shaw has committed to furthering his academic and athletic career at Mercer University.

THOMASVILLE — Thomasville High School’s own Cole Shaw has announced his commitment to play football at Mercer University. Shaw has been a stellar receiver for the Bulldogs and after graduating, he will join the Bears in Macon.

“They’ve been recruiting me for a long time and they’ve done a really good job. I really like the coaching staff. Coach Cronic has done just a great job there,” Shaw said. “I have friends who have gone there and like it and I’ve even talked to a lot of guys that play there. A lot of them had opportunities to transfer, but they decided to stay because they just liked it so much. They like the culture and everything, so that was a big deal for me.”{

Shaw said he’s happy to have made the the decision, eliminating some stress and allowing him focus on finishing his senior year. Through six games, Shaw has put together the beginnings of a phenomenal senior campaign. In three of the Bulldogs six games, Shaw has caught four passes and currently has a pair of 100 yard plus performances on the year.

So far, Shaw has 19 receptions this season amassing 331 receiving yards for four touchdowns. He is also averaging 17.4 yards per catch.

As for where Shaw is headed, Mercer is a very storied program. They first took the football field in a game against Georgia in 1892 for the first college football game played in the state.

In 2023, the Bears are 3-2 on the season with their only losses coming to SoCon opponent Furman and Ole Miss, who is currently ranked number 16 in the country. Mercer’s biggest win thus far came just last weekend when they defeated in-conference opponent VMI 38-3.