Editor’s note: In the final 50 days before Chip Kelly and the Ducks return to the field to defend their status as Pac-12 Champions, the Emerald sports desk will take a look back at one Oregon alum each day whose jersey number corresponds to the amount of days left before the season opener against Arkansas State.
Arriving in Eugene, Mission Viejo lineman Nick Reed was known for playing at a high level despite only being 6’2″ and 228 pounds – extremely small for a collegiate defensive end. Four years and 20 pounds later, Reed exited University of Oregon as an All-American, fan favorite and a role model for future defensive linemen to learn from.
After spending the 2005 season as a back up, a rash of team injuries allowed him to entrench himself in the starting lineup for the majority of the 2006 season, a spot he wouldn’t relinquish for the duration of his UO career. He was an integral part of the defensive-line rotation during these first two years as a Duck, but bigger things were on the horizon.
In 2007, he was a breakout player for UO as the team rode the dynamic tandem of Dennis Dixon and Jonathan Stewart to a #2 ranking before Dixon’s crumpled under a knee injury. Reed had a season to remember, though, earning second-team All-American honors as well as a spot on the first-team All-Pac-10 list: He led the team with 60 tackles and had a streak of 10 straight games in which he recorded a tackle-for-loss. Reed was a star off the field as well, making an appearance on ESPN’s Academic All-America list.
For an encore in 2008, he earned first-team All-American honors from the Walter Camp Football Foundation as he led the Pac-10 in sacks with 10 — on his way to winning the Morris Trophy, awarded each year to the Pac-12’s top defensive lineman. The small lineman with the endless engine led, too, the country with five fumble recoveries and was fourth in the country with 13 sacks. Reed ended his senior season with a bang, recording three TFLs and three sacks against rival Oregon State as the Ducks kept the Beavers from the Rose Bowl in a 65-38 drubbing.
After his senior season, he was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the 2009 draft and made an immediate impact, returning a fumble 79 yards for a touchdown during his rookie season. He has since bounced around the NFL and most recently signed a two-year contract with the Minnesota Vikings prior to the 2012 season.
Other Nick Reed media: 2007 TFL against Michigan, Nick Reed on his NFL experiences