Even if nobody else knew it, Columbus Marion-Franklin’s Verlon Reed knew four years ago that he would be an Ohio State Buckeye one day.
That day was today as Reed became the first Columbus City League player in seven years to sign a letter-of-intent for the Buckeyes. (The last City League players to sign with OSU were DB Sirjo Welch of Beechcroft, FB Dionte Johnson of Eastmoor and RB Erik Haw of Independence).
On Wednesday, Marion-Franklin coach Scott Williams told a story that Reed showed up and told as a freshman and told he and coach Brian Haffele that “I’m going to be your next Ohio State Buckeye.”
“I don’t think they knew what I played when I first got there,” Reed said. “I think they thought I was a linebacker. I had to convince them that I was a quarterback. The first day of practice, I went over there and he was impressed.”
Everybody knows about the 6-2, 195-pound Reed today. He is a two-way standout at quarterback and defensive back.
As a senior, Reed led Marion-Franklin to an 11-3 record as the Red Devils made it to the Division II state semifinals. Reed passed for over 1,500 yards and 18 touchdowns and rushed for over 1,250 yards and 19 touchdowns. He was a first-team All-Ohio pick as a quarterback in D-II. Reed estimated that he started about half of his team’s games on defense and he played there as needed.
Reed had offers from MAC schools, but Ohio State and other Big Ten schools swooped in at midseason. OSU agreed to allow Reed to rep at quarterback as a freshman, a decision that clinched it for him.
“I have played quarterback my whole life,” Reed said. “That is very important to me. That’s where I want to play. They are giving me an opportunity. I’ve had to make my case a lot. A lot of schools came in and said, ‘You’re a great quarterback, but we don’t need you at quarterback.’ They are going to give me a shot and that’s all I need.
“I’m not a one-dimensional athlete. I can play other positions. If (quarterback) doesn’t work out, I can move somewhere else.”
A reporter suggested that Reed’s story parallels the path that Troy Smith took. He went from being an “athlete prospect” on signing day in 2002 to the Heisman Trophy winner in 2006.
“My favorite quarterback was Troy Smith,” Reed said. “I idolized him a lot. That’s somebody I looked up to a lot. That’s one of the reasons why I liked the Buckeyes.
“That does give me hope. I may be giving young teams in this city hope that they can play at Ohio State. But he gives me hope that I could play quarterback at Ohio State.”
Haffele talked about what makes Reed special.
“Verlon’s greatest contribution is his leadership and his work ethic,” Haffele said. “He would be the first one here to practice and the last one to leave. In the preseason, he made sure the skill guys would stay after practice and work on seven-and-seven drills. He’s done tremendous things in the building as a leader. The whole school kind of follows him. He’s never had any kind of discipline issues in four years.
“I’ve heard people say, ‘Ohio State is getting a good athlete with Verlon Reed.’ They are getting a good football player. He is a true quarterback. He can make every throw on the field. The judgment for a quarterback is whether you can throw the 20-yard out route and he throws that as well as anybody I’ve ever seen.
“The best two guys I have ever coached were Ernie Wheelwright and Gary Russell (at Walnut Ridge). They both went to Minnesota and played in the NFL. Verlon is at that level. That’s how I would judge him.”
Reed took over as the Red Devils’ quarterback midway through his sophomore year. Marion-Franklin moved to the spread for his junior year in 2008 and Reed flourished.
“I knew what I had in Verlon,” Haffele said. “We had to get him the ball as much as possible. We went to more of a shotgun offense, which was weird for me. This year, he called about 60 percent of the plays at the line of scrimmage.
“He’s played everything from outside linebacker to cornerback to free safety to wide receiver to quarterback. If we had to use him as a long snapper, he would have done it. He just kind of did whatever he had to do.”
Below is a video interview with Reed from his signing day press conference.
The Verlon Reed File
* Position: Quarterback/defensive back
* School: Columbus Marion-Franklin
* Height, Weight: 6-2, 185
* 40-Yard Time: 4.5
* Vital Statistics: As a senior, Reed led Marion-Franklin to an 11-3 record as the Red Devils made it to the Division II state semifinals. Reed passed for over 1,500 yards and 18 touchdowns and rushed for over 1,250 yards and 19 touchdowns. He was a first-team All-Ohio pick as a quarterback in D-II. As a junior, Reed passed for 1,200 yards and rushed for 700. He completed close to 70 percent of his passes and connected for 15 touchdowns with just four interceptions. He has been selected for the Ohio All-Star Classic April 23 at Ohio Stadium and the Big 33 Football Classic in June. Reed will rep some at quarterback, but he could also project as a defensive back at Ohio State. He is the first Marion-Franklin player to sign with OSU since Percy King in 1995 and the first City League player to become a Buckeye in seven years.
* Rankings: He is rated as the No. 78 overall senior prospect in Ohio, according to Ohio High magazine/JJHuddle.com. Also rated as the No. 49 overall prospect in the state, according to The Ohio Football Recruiting News. ESPN Scouts Inc. rates Reed as the nation’s No. 158 quarterback. SuperPrep ranks Reed as the 77th-best prospect in the Midwest.
* College Choices: Reed verbaled to Ohio State on Dec. 16, picking the Buckeyes over Toledo, Syracuse, Bowling Green and Kent State.
* Academics: Holds a 2.5 GPA and scored a 17 on the ACT.
* Why he picked Ohio State? “It was everything that I expected it to be. There wasn’t anything behind closed doors that I didn’t know about. If you need something, they can provide it for you.”
* How he figures to fit in at Ohio State? “I think I fit in very well with their system. I will go in there and they will evaluate me and wherever they put me at that’s where I will be at.”
* When is he enrolling? In June for summer quarter
* Possible Uniform Number: “I want to keep my number, No. 10.”
* Hobbies: “I like to stay home and watch TV and chill sometimes. I don’t want to party or go out to clubs. I don’t mind being at home.”
Below we have video of Reed in action from ScoutingOhio.com.