BOULDER, Colo. — For the past few falls in DeSoto, Texas, when high school football tryouts are over and the players are split up into five teams — varsity level; JV-A and JV-B; freshman-A and freshman-B — there is a name that comes up over and over again: Colorado wide receiver Laviska Shenault.



But not to those kids on the varsity team who are going to have their names in the newspapers and their jerseys recognized at school. Not even to the kids on the junior varsity teams, waiting to make their step up and get their chance.



Instead, when the players put on the Freshman B team — the lowest level for players at DeSoto High School — might feel despondent, it’s Shenault’s name that coaches use. Because six and a half years ago, the player who is now seen as one of the most athletic players in the country, who could be a first-round NFL Draft pick if he chooses to go pro after the 2019 season, was just a kid on the DeSoto High...