Coming of Age

Six days into football camp at Cal State Northridge and Quinton Reed already is answering to “Pops.”

“I’m the old man out here,” Reed said, smiling.

Reed, 6 feet 2 and 270 pounds, is a 32-year-old linebacker trying to earn a starting spot with the Matadors.

The way first-year Coach Ron Ponciano sees it, Reed has a good chance of making a significant contribution.

“He’s heavier than I thought, but there are places we can play him at 270 [pounds],” Ponciano said. “Hell yes, we’ll use him somehow.”

Ponciano, the defensive coordinator at San Jose State last year, recruited Reed out of Mt. San Jacinto College, where Reed played the last two seasons after an eight-year stint in the Army.

But Reed didn’t sign with the Spartans and Ponciano, who was hired at Northridge in January, offered Reed a scholarship.

“I was more excited than surprised,” Reed said of Ponciano’s offer. “I wanted to play ball in college.”

The Matadors are expected to use Reed as an outside linebacker on passing plays and closer to the line on rushing plays. Wherever they put him, one thing is certain: Reed is the oldest player in the Big Sky Conference. Until Reed came along, that distinction belonged to Weber State senior defensive tackle William Hawes, 30. The Wildcats also had the second oldest in senior defensive end Santos Carrillo, 28.

Now Hawes and Carrillo have to move aside for Reed, who is more concerned about being an impact player than a curiosity. “Age is not so much a factor as determination,” Reed said.

Reed knows about sticking it out, about survival.

After graduating from Rutherford High in Panama City, Fla., Reed worked at a warehouse in Miami. He later enlisted in the Army and was assigned to Ft. Bragg, N.C.

When the Persian Gulf War broke in January 1991, Reed spent eight months in Saudi Arabia as part of Operation Desert Storm. He returned home to find his wife, Rachel, seriously ill.

“She got real sick while I was gone and she passed away [from pneumonia] when I came back,” Reed said.

Reed left the Army in 1996 and went to Mt. San Jacinto to play football. He has a 17-month-old son, Quinton Jr., who lives in Hemet with the child’s mother.

At Northridge, Reed hopes to contribute with his play and maturity.

“I’m getting across to some of the [Northridge players],” Reed said. “Everyone is getting a grip of who I am.”