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TALLAHASSEE - The pingpong-like career of Willie Reid continues.
The redshirt sophomore came to Florida State as a tailback, but a logjam at the position paved the way for him to move to receiver so the Seminoles could take advantage of his speed and hands. Just when he was getting comfortable there, he's back in the backfield, at least some of the time.
Back and forth.
"Whatever the team needs, I'll be ready to do," he said. "If they want me to play receiver and some running back like they did last game, that's cool. If they just want me to play running back, that's cool."
Tailback Leon Washington went out in the first quarter against North Carolina with a dislocated right elbow and, with the coaches carefully pacing Greg Jones after his return from knee surgery, Reid had to do a little of this and a little of that.
Actually, he did a lot of both.
He caught three passes for 50 yards, including an acrobatic 43-yarder that left him inches from a touchdown, and had nine rushes for 55 yards. That's an average of nearly 8.2 yards every time he touched the ball.
"It wasn't tough," he said of switching to tailback again. "The toughest thing about it was getting back into the contact of big linemen and linebackers."
HAPPY RETURN: Receiver Dominic Robinson takes no joy in Washington's injury, but it has given him an opportunity to be the Seminoles' top punt returner again.
"I'm excited, and I'm hoping to take advantage of it," Robinson said. "It hadn't really hit me until (Monday). We're sitting in the meeting room and they're talking about how we've got a good chance at returning one and we've got a good returner. I'm thinking, "Yeah. Leon is going to do a good job.' And then it hit me, he's talking about me. Coach (Mickey) Andrews is talking about me."
BIG GAME ... AND THAT'S NO CROC: The women's soccer team, which lost 2-1 games against Southern California and Penn State last weekend, needs a good result to avoid an 0-3 start. No problem other than the Seminoles travel to Gainesville on Friday to face No.7 Florida, which beat USC and Penn State. Sunshine will carry the game at 7 p.m.
"For confidence, it would be huge," coach Patrick Baker said. "It's not a must-win, but what happens (if we lose) is we have to play the sixth game of the season in hopes of getting to .500."
SURPRISE MOVE: Former East Lake High star right-hander Marc LaMacchia, who needed Tommy John surgery after pitching 82/3 scoreless innings last season, had planned to return for his senior year.
"I wanted to be the ace; I wanted to play in the new (renovated) stadium; I wanted to play one more year with Stephen Drew and Eddy Martinez-Esteve," he said.
But the Texas Rangers, who gambled on him in the 21st round, came in with what he called the "right amount," given his arm surgery, and he signed last week.
"It was definitely the hardest decision of my life," he said. "But I had to do what's best for my career ... If you're going to make real money in baseball, you know where it's going to be - in the bigs. Hopefully, I'll get a chance in two or three years."
While LaMacchia continues his rehabilitation, he is taking classes at FSU. In January, he expects to begin his pro career in Arizona and then move to Class A.
- Brian Landman covers Florida State athletics. He can be reached at 813 226-3347 or by e-mail at landman@sptimes.com