by Adam MacDonald
Life is quieter now for Greg Reid.
It’s been a week since Reid — the Lowndes Vikings’ star football player — made his much-publicized announcement of what college he will attend in the fall.
The decision was Florida State, and the announcement was a sight to see. Reid made his decision on the radio in front of a live audience at Austin’s Cattle Company. There wasn’t a seat to be had, as news outlets, family, friends and curious on-lookers were on hand. So was Randall Godfrey, Lowndes County’s favorite son and one of the greatest football players to ever come out of Valdosta. He was there rooting for Reid to choose Georgia, his alma mater.
But Signing Day has passed, and with it the crush from all involved in the recruiting process. Gone are the days of regular phone calls from the media and coaches, gone are the days of visiting colleges and gone are the days of late night visits from college coaches to Reid’s house.
It was a process that Reid’s mother, Diane Hart, called intrusive. Life is returning to normal for Reid, and the 18-year-old said he was
relieved the moment he made his decision to go to Florida State.
“It was the toughest decision I’ve ever made,” Reid said the night of his announcement. “I hope none of the coaches at Georgia or Alabama are mad at me. All five schools were real good, but I had to make the best
decision for me.”
Most people can’t tell from the way Reid plays on the field, but he has become a true underdog story.
The 2008 Player of the Year in the state of Georgia has battled family issues, grades and rumors throughout his young life on the way to becoming one of the most sought after high school players in the country. One reason Reid has been so successful at football is because he’s been at it for 14 years. Ever since he can remember, football has been a part of his life.
“Growing up, I always liked football,” Reid said. “I’ve been playing since the age of four, and I never missed a year or a season.”
Reid got his start at the Valdosta Boys and Girls Club and continued at Lowndes Middle School and then Lowndes High. It didn’t take him long to figure out that he had a knack for the game.
“I’d say about the age of nine or 10 is when I started to play right,” Reid said. “That’s when I started (understanding) how to play the game.”
It wasn’t an easy path to success though. Reid faced challenges in his home life along the way. In his freshman year at Lowndes his father, Greg Reid Sr., went to prison. It was difficult for Reid whose father had been supportive since he was little.
“It was kind of hard growing up,” Reid said. “By my ninth grade year my dad went to prison. He was there for me when I was four years old playing football. Growing up everyday with my momma getting beaten was hard, but I made it through it. It was rough.”
Reid’s father remains in prison in Albany, but Reid said that he has a good relationship with his dad. They talk on the phone and recruiters from UGA even went to visit Greg Sr. to talk about his son playing football.
With his dad in prison, Reid was raised through high school by his mother Diane. She helped keep Reid in line spiritually which he said helped him make his decision to go to Florida State.
“(Spirituality) is a big part of my life, a big part of my family life,” Reid said. “We’ve been going to (church) ever since I was born.”
Also in Reid’s support circle are his three brothers. Two are older and his younger brother is a junior at Lowndes.
“We have a good relationship,” Reid said. “They come to all my games.”
The hot button issue that surrounded Reid and his attempt to try and sign with a big time Division I football program was grades. Reid said he came to the realization that he could play major college football in his second semester of his junior year at LHS. It’s then that he knew he needed to get better academically to make his dream come to fruition.
“I knew I couldn’t make it to Division I with my grades,” Reid said.
“Coaches kept calling me and telling me about JUCO (junior college) all the time. I wasn’t trying to do that. A lot of people told me it was impossible (to go Division I), but I came out on top.”
Reid works with tutors everyday of the week and has even sacrificed trying to play baseball because he knew it would cut into his academic life.
“I can’t say that I’m a good student, but I’m better than I was,” Reid said. “I’m trying. I probably won’t have a lot to do one day, but I’ll go to a (tutor) anyways. I work hard everyday, even when the football season is over. That’s one thing I learned- to take school seriously like I take football.”
His favorite subject in school is English, and he even admits to being OK at math when he works hard on it. At Florida State he wants to study sports management.
“A lot of players down there take sports management,” Reid said. “It’s a good major so I’m going to try it out.”
So despite his blessings on the field, Reid has battled issues in his home life and in the classroom. That, coupled with his high profile, has led to rumors. Everyone who is anyone that knows anything about sports in Lowndes County has an opinion on Reid, and the opinions aren’t always popular.
Reid is used to it by now and shrugs it off or turns it into motivation.
“People want to talk bad about me because of the way I’ve been raised up, or whatever,” Reid said. “A lot of people told me it was impossible to go Division I my freshman year, but I proved them wrong...People tell me about (rumors), but I don’t check it out or look at it,” Reid said.
The biggest opinion and rumor in town in January was where Reid would go to college. National Signing Day was Feb. 4, but Reid agreed to make his decision on the radio on Feb. 3. He narrowed his choices to five
schools- Alabama, Auburn, Florida State, Georgia and Miami, Fla. The University of Florida, Reid’s favorite school growing up, was out of the running because Reid said it wasn’t the place for him after he took his official visit to Gainesville.
One by one Reid eliminated hats from the table in front of the audience until only two were left- UGA and FSU. Reid picked up the UGA hat and came tantalizing close to putting it on his head, but dropped it and put the FSU cap on instead.
It was a dramatic moment, but no one at the time except for Reid realized how difficult it was to come to that decision. Just one night
earlier Reid said he was 100 percent sure he would be going to Alabama.
“To tell you the truth, I wanted to get away from home,” Reid said. “At the time, Florida State and Alabama were equal. I just wanted to get away from home, but my grandmother came up and talked to me, and then I felt like I should be closer to home than farther away... I still like Valdosta, it’s still home,” Reid said. “I always will like Valdosta.”
Reid has been among the best players in the state of Georgia for the past two seasons. He has burned several teams as a running back and punt returner, but neither was his main position. Reid was recruited to be and will be a cornerback in college, a position he said when he plays it makes him feel the most confident he’s ever been.
All of his skills made him a hot commodity, but two occurrences propelled Reid into the national recruiting spotlight- his decommitment from the University of Florida and his breakout performance in the Under Armour All-American game.
On Jan. 5 Reid participated in the Under Armour All-American game in Orlando, Fla., an all-star game for the top high school players in the country broadcast by ESPN. Reid shined brighter than anyone on the Black team which lost 27-16. He recorded two interceptions and nearly had a third, but the ball was jarred loose from his grip when he hit the ground. The ESPN announcers adamantly said that if instant replay was used, the call of an incomplete pass would have been overturned and Reid would have been credited with his third interception. Reid was named MVP of the Black team and his stellar play jettisoned him into a five star recruit.
Florida State will give Reid another opportunity to shine on national television, this time on a weekly basis in the fall. Reid’s ultimate dream is that FSU helps him develop the tools to one day play in the NFL.
But until then, Greg Reid just wants to enjoy his remaining months at LHS, and the senior looks forward to events like Graduation Day.
“Lot of tears, I’ll tell you that,” Reid said about what he expects at graduation. “A lot of people didn’t think I’d make it man. There’s been a lot of doubt, I’ll tell you that.”
So far Reid has proved all his doubters wrong on his path to becoming one of the best athletes ever to come out of Valdosta.
