Josh Reed spent his entire football career doing things most people could only dream of.
Now he is attempting to do the same off the field.
Reed, 30, has returned to LSU to complete his degree in general studies after playing eight seasons in the NFL for the Buffalo Bills.
The Rayne, La., native was released by the Bills in February 2010 and signed with the San Diego Chargers before being released during training camp.
“I was actually excited to come back. I tried out in San Diego, and I didn’t make it there,” Reed said. “When they called me back to tell me I didn’t make the team I was like, ‘Yes,’ and we packed up our stuff within two to three days and we were out of there. I was ready to come home.”
Before making the final decision to return, he consulted with Cowboys linebacker Bradie James.
James, who got his degree in criminology before going pro, played with Reed from 1999 to 2001 at LSU.
“He and I talked about it, and he told me his heart wasn’t in it,” James said. “I told him, ‘If your heart isn’t in it, go back to school.'”
Though Reed did not graduate before leaving school in 2002, he is by no means a rare case.
Only 57.5 percent of Reed’s incoming freshman class of 1998 graduated, according to the Office of Budget and Planning.
Reed, who has been married nearly two years and has a 7-month-old daughter, hopes to join that number of graduates in May 2012. He has 39 credit hours remaining.
“I don’t want to be the athlete that was here just for sports,” Reed said. “It will make me proud to be able to say that I graduated from college.”
Friend and former teammate James has backed Reed’s decision from the get-go.
“Oh my goodness, it’s hard to leave school, make money and come back,” James said. “If you leave school and don’t make money, you can come back. But he’s made money so it’s real tough to have the discipline to come back. But it’s the right thing to do.”
He is LSU’s most decorated receiver, even though he was originally recruited as a running back.
Reed, the 2001 Biletnikoff award winner, is LSU’s all-time leader in career receiving yards and receptions in a season, among other records. He broke the record for receptions and receiving yards in a game at Alabama in 2001 when he pulled down 19 catches for 293 yards.
But he first found his receiving mojo during the 2000 Peach Bowl against Georgia Tech — his first season as a wideout.
LSU was trailing the Yellow Jackets 14-9 in the fourth quarter when Reed made a miraculous leaping catch from quarterback Rohan Davey to catapult the Tigers to a 28-14 victory.
“There was some traffic in there, but I caught it really clean,” Reed recalled. “I knew I had to get a foot down, but that moment, just catching, that’s when I thought, ‘Hey this might be fun.’ That was an amazing moment for me.”
Reed declared for the 2002 NFL Draft even though his size and speed were questioned by NFL scouts. He used the negative press as motivation to show off his skills.
“I took [the criticism] as they wanted you to prove to them that they were wrong,” Reed said. “It’s not really a chip, but it’s just something they evaluate that they think you can improve on.”
Despite the question marks, the Bills selected Reed in the second round of the 2002 NFL Draft.
Reed proved to be more than capable, pulling down 311 receptions for 3,575 yards and 10 touchdowns in his eight seasons in Buffalo.
Now Reed enjoys spending his Sundays at home.
“I’m having a lot more fun watching games,” Reed said. “Just being able to have the perspective of having done it is nice.”
 
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Contact Rob Landry at [email protected]