BASILE – Andre Reed doesn’t take plays off. He doesn’t take practices, reps, or workouts off either. But don’t get this confused with your cliché "works harder than everyone else story."
Reed may work harder than most, but it’s his natural instincts, pure athleticism, and love for the game that has seen him thrive, and grabbed division I attention.
In 2017, the Bearcats erased the memory of a 3-and-8 season, returning to the state quarterfinals. While defense saw a heavy does of number 7 running into the end zone, they also saw him making plays on special teams and defense.
The now 5-foot-11-inch, 200 pound Reed is an all-state linebacker, and that award nearly moved him to tears.
"I was in church when I found out. I was playing on my phone," he said. "I almost started crying right there in church. I didn’t know how to react to it. I didn’t expect it… I showed my mom first because she was beside me. She taped my grandparents, my aunts and uncles. They all turned around and told me congratulations. At the end of church they told the preacher and he announced it in front of the whole church and everyone just went crazy in church."
Reed was a first-team all-district running back, and all-state linebacker in 2017, a good starting place for a budding star in Basile.