Forever a Jayhawk: Remembering Kansas football great Nick Reid

The start of the much-anticipated 2023 season for Kansas football is now just seven days away. In honor of that, we viewed this as the perfect opportunity to commemorate perhaps the greatest Jayhawk to ever wear the No. 7 jersey, linebacker Nick Reid.

Reid – a Derby, Kansas, native – played for KU from 2002 to 2005 under former head coach Mark Mangino. Both Reid and Mangino started their tenures as Jayhawks in 2002, and Reid ended up being a critical piece of KU’s early success in the Mangino era.

Reid was a three-star quarterback coming out of Derby High School. According to Rivals, he picked KU over just one other Division I offer which came from Oklahoma State.

Once at KU, Reid switched to the defensive side of the ball so that he could better help the team and earn more playing time. It didn’t take long for him – and the coaches – to learn that he was a natural fit at linebacker.

Reid ended up appearing in 48 games during his KU career, starting in 40 of them. He racked up a total of 416 tackles, which still ranks second all-time in Kansas football history.

Reid got progressively better year after year as a Jayhawk

In 2003, Reid was named All-Big Honorable Mention. In 2004, Reid was named Second Team All-Big 12. Then in 2005, Reid was named First Team All-Big 12 and became the first Jayhawk in school history to be named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year. To this day, he’s the only Jayhawk to have earned that distinction.

Reid was also named Third Team All-America by the Associated Press following his senior year.

Reid led the team in tackles in three consecutive seasons from 2003 to 2005 and helped lead the Jayhawks to a pair of bowl appearances: the 2003 Tangerine Bowl (now the Pop-Tarts Bowl) and the 2005 Fort Worth Bowl – which would end up being the last game of Reid’s KU career.

The Jayhawks won the Fort Worth Bowl that year. At the time, it was their first bowl victory in 10 years. Although Reid had a relatively quiet game with just 6 total tackles, it was still a great way for the talented senior to end his college career.

Following his time at KU, Reid was signed as a free agent with the Kansas City Chiefs following the 2006 NFL Draft. In February 2007, Reid was re-signed to a two-year contract.

His stay in the NFL didn’t last long, but his passion for football never wavered. Reid now coaches as the defensive coordinator for Joplin High School – a role he’s had for 11 years.

KU fans will have the chance to honor Reid once more when he returns to Lawrence this season to finally see his name go up in the Ring of Honor. The ceremony will be held Oct. 7 when the Jayhawks take on Central Florida.

“I am truly honored to be getting this recognition, but I know for a fact, it wouldn’t have happened without my teammates,” Reid said. “To think that my children will be able to take my grandchildren to Memorial Stadium and see my name in the Ring of Honor is more than I could have ever dreamt about. I am forever grateful to be a Jayhawk. Rock Chalk!