When Bill O’Brien was the head football coach at Penn State from 2012-13, he remembers three football camps for high schoolers that would take place each spring.
“We had camp and Penn State camp there’s probably three sessions and 1,000 kids come to each session,” the Houston Texans coach and general manager told reporters April 25.
When a high school athlete that had potential would show up at the camp, O’Brien or a member of his staff would bring the kid aside and work them out separately.
John Reid, a sophomore from St. Joseph’s Preparatory School in Philadelphia, was one of those kids.
“We took him on the field and did some drills with him and just noticed right away his movement skills,” O’Brien recalled. “This is when he was 14-15 years old — his ability to follow directions, his intensity, his seriousness.”
According to O’Brien, Reid battled through injuries while with the Nittany Lions, collecting 37 pass breakups, the 11th-most in school history.
Said O’Brien: “He went through some adversity there at Penn State, injuries and different things, but he came out last year and was highly recommended by James Franklin and did a good job last year at Penn State. We were glad to be able to get him.”
Reid will be part of a crammed cornerback room that includes Bradley Roby, Gareon Conley, Lonnie Johnson, Vernon Hargreaves, and Phillip Gaines among other corners. If his health is able to cooperate with his athleticism and diligence, Reid should challenge for a spot on the 53-man roster.