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Phil Reed is working on it
By KEITH NIEBUHR, Times Staff Writer LECANTO -- He could be resting. He could be partying. He could be sleeping in. He could, well, be like so many teenagers during summer vacation. Instead, Lecanto quarterback/safety Phil Reed works out three hours a day, five days a week, mows lawns part time and is thinking about shrimping at night to earn extra cash. "I'm trying to buy a car before school starts," Reed said. "That way I can go work out whenever I want." That Reed works while others sleep is surprising to few who know him. His father, Chuck, said Phil has been goal-oriented as long as he can remember. And his football coach, Dick Slack, called Reed one of the hardest-working players he has seen. "I wish I had more kids with his work ethic," Slack said. "I couldn't be more impressed with him. He's worked for everything he has." Why such drive? "He's planned on (playing college football) from when he was 7," Chuck Reed said. "He wanted to play football and he worked at it from then on." Phil Reed is a workout fanatic. He's in the weight room every chance he gets and it isn't uncommon to see him running stadium steps in the hot afternoon sun long after everybody else has left for the day. "I've done a million of them things," Reed said. Make no mistake, Reed has natural talent. But what makes him one of the area's top two-way threats and perhaps Lecanto's most valuable player is his perfectionist attitude. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound rising senior desperately wants to win and earn a college scholarship. "That's what I'm working for," he said. "This is the time of year I need to gain weight, get stronger and get faster." Coaches from Division I-AA programs Furman and Liberty scouted Reed, who projects as a safety or linebacker in college, at spring practice. Stacks of letters arrive at his house weekly, but at this point it's too early to tell which level Reed is suited for. That picture should begin to clear this summer when Reed attends camps at Florida and Florida State. No matter how he performs, he is sure to gain from the experience. If he plays at a high level, it could bring interest from major college programs. If he struggles, at the least, he'll get valuable coaching. "I'm going in there to learn and fine-tune my skills," Reed said. "But it'd be nice to turn somebody's head. I'm going to treat it like a normal day of practice." Slack has no doubt Reed will succeed at the next level. During Reed's sophomore season, the Panthers went 0-10. The next year, they were 6-4 and Reed was one of the central figures behind that turnaround. "He's got the intangibles they're looking for," Slack said. "He's a natural leader, the kind of kid people want in their program. It's all going to depend on how well he does this year. He's definitely working hard enough. He's got all the tools. He just needs to refine them." In case you're wondering, Reed also works in the classroom. He has a B average. -- Staff writer Keith Niebuhr can be reached at 860-7337 or niebuhr@sptimes.com.
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