As a senior he rushed for 1,089 yards and 17 touchdowns, had 19 receptions for 227 yards and returned 8 kickoffs for 133 yards. Defensively he had 138 tackles and 2 interceptions as a linebacker and forced two fumbles. Named the team MVP that year, Shotwell also garnered All-CIF Southern Section honors, All-Santa Barbara County and Los Angeles Times All-Section team honors. He played in the Santa Barbara County All-Star Game, earning defensive MVP honors and led the Chargers to an 11-3 record and a spot in the CIF Southern Section Division IV Championship game in 2001.
Shotwell visited the U.S. Naval Academy before deciding on Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, for college and to continue his football success. Shotwell holds the Cal Poly school record for tackles in a season with 158 and finished with 392 career tackles and 4 career interceptions. He played in all 46 games of his Cal Poly career with starts in his final 35. Shotwell had a career-high 20 tackles against Texas State in a game nationally televised on ESPN. He holds the school record for sacks in a game with 4 against San Diego State. He was named to the All-Great West Conference First Team in 2005 and 2006 and the Conference Defensive Player of the Year in 2006. Also in 2006, Shotwell earned the Buck Buchanan Award given to the nation’s top defensive player in Division I-AA, and he played in the 2007 East-West Shrine Game where he was the game’s leading tackler earning the Pat Tillman Award.
Shotwell signed as a free agent with the Oakland Raiders in 2007 and finished that year on the Philadelphia Eagles practice squad. In 2008 he went to training camp with the Indianapolis Colts and spent time that year on the Minnesota Vikings, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Kansas City Chiefs practice squads.
A Santa Barbara native, Shotwell is the son of Steven and Cynthia and has three brothers – Ryan, Troy and Matthew. Ryan and Troy also played football for Cal Poly. Shotwell notes his proudest moment as combining on a tackle at Cal Poly and realizing it was his brother Ryan who helped him. He returned to Cal Poly in 2009 to coach linebackers and currently volunteers his time as a motivational speaker for youth, encouraging them to make good choices and to sacrifice now for what they really want the most in the future. He holds a degree in political science with a minor in psychology from Cal Poly.
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