Cazenovia — Cazenovia High School senior Jake Shaffner, one of the standout players on the Lakers 2015 state champion football team, has announced that after graduation he will attend Colgate University, where he will study liberal arts with a pre-engineering focus and play football for the Raiders. His decision was announced at a ceremony at Cazenovia High School on Feb. 3, during which Shaffner officially signed his national letter of intent to become a Colgate student and athlete.

“I can’t express how excited I am for the next four years,” Shaffner said as CHS students, teachers, coaches and administrators watched. “I accomplished a lot here [at Cazenovia] — two sectional championships, the state championship, two lacrosse state final appearances — it’s been an amazing ride. I wouldn’t change anything for the world. There’s no question this is where I should be [in Cazenovia] and I am going where I should be [to Colgate].”

Shaffner’s decision to attend Colgate has an even more personal impact in that his father is the defensive coordinator for the Colgate Raiders football team. He said telling his father of his decision was “emotional” and they gave each other a big hug.

Shaffner had a landmark year as a Cazenovia athlete during his senior year, particularly as a member of the Lakers football team. Not only did the team win its first state championship, but Shaffner was later named to the New York State Sportswriters Association all-state team, was named the NYSSWA Class B State Player of the Year and the New York State High School Football Coaches Association Player of the Year.