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The Rebs streak is over after receiving nine commits in nine days. But, that didn’t slow down Matt Luke and his staff from adding yet another impact defender to #SHARKSEA20N now that four-star defensive back Eric Reed, Jr. has committed to Ole Miss.
The long and athletic cornerback from Shreveport, La. is the second one to join the Rebels’ 2020 class, jumping on board after Lakevias Daniel verbally committed to defensive backs coach Charles Clark earlier this month.
The nation’s No. 200 overall player and No. 16 safety in the country chose Ole Miss over some big-time offers. Colorado, Kentucky, LSU, Notre Dame, TCU, Virginia, and West Virginia have all offered among others. The newest Rebel commit hails from the Boot and it’s quite notable that Ed Orgeron and Dave Aranda have offered him and he chose to leave the state via the verbal commitment.
Committed ‼️@CoachClark3 @CoachMattLuke pic.twitter.com/wdA6vO9YWf
— Eric Reed Jr (@EricReedJr3) June 18, 2019
As a junior at Calvary Baptist Academy, Reed made 40 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, and 10 passes defended, leading the Cavaliers to an 8-4 record.
How does he fit in?
The 6’1, 197-pound defensive back prospect might be rated as a safety by 247Sports, but he plays a ton of cornerback Calvary Baptist. And he looks awfully comfortable there. Sure, he could gain 10-to-15 pounds and become a safety at Ole Miss, but his ball skills, length, and athleticism make him also a viable candidate to stay on an island at cornerback.
At The Opening Regionals in New Orleans earlier this year, Reed ran a 4.62 forty-yard dash, a 4.34 shuttle, and jumped 32” in the vertical. Not breakaway speed for a corner, but, as I mentioned above, he has the length and ability to high-point the football that is ideal for a guy in one-on-one coverage.
Senior Myles Hartsfield will be out of eligibility after the 2019 season so if Clark and Mike MacIntyre want to move him over to man the middle of the field, the race for that starting gig would be wide-open with A.J. Harris, C.J. Miller, and Jonathan Haynes in the running as well. If he stays at corner, Jamar Richardson, Keidron Smith, JaKorey Hawkins, and Jaylon Jones will have something to say about it, too.