National Signing Day 2015: Welcome to Penn State, John Reid

Welcome to Black Shoe Diaries' coverage of National Signing Day 2015. We're here to make sure that you know exactly who the newest Nittany Lions are, where they come from, and what we can expect of them. Each of these reports will include their vital information, their high school statistics, highlight tape analysis, outlook for their freshmen seasons and more. We sincerely hope you enjoy getting to know the stars of tomorrow. If you've been reading along with our recruiting coverage all year, we appreciate the support and are glad you hung around with us for the ride that was the 2015 recruiting class. If you are a new reader, welcome! We're glad you're here, and we hope you stick around for 2016!

To navigate your way to other members of the 2015 recruiting class, simply head back to our draft board and click on the player of your choice.

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In just two recruiting classes, James Franklin, Bob Shoop, Terry Smith, and the rest of the Penn State coaching staff have turned the Nittany Lions secondary from a defensive weakness, into perhaps the strongest unit on the roster. John Reid, the second rated cornerback in Pennsylvania, figures to be a key part of that group going forward.

We've got a new Nittany Lion!! Welcome to the #PSUFBFamily, @John_Doe_25. #PSUSigningDay pic.twitter.com/lVEQQwOlQ9

— Penn State Football (@PennStateFball) February 4, 2015

Stats

Hometown: Philadelphia, PA

High School: St.Joseph's

Position: Cornerback

Height/Weight: 5'10"/180

247Composite Rank: ★★★★ (0.9416)

Positional Rank: #17 Cornerback, #3 Player in Pennsylvania

Commitment Date: August 8, 2014

247 Crystal Ball:

High School Stats

MaxPreps didn't have many stats available for John, but here's what we do have.

Year	GP	Catches	Receiving Yards	TD	INT
Senior	11	36	699	12	2

Highlight Tape

Scouting Report

The first thing that jumps out to me watching John Reid is his technique. A lot of times, high school defensive backs, especially those with high end talent, rely on great speed or elite athleticism. Reid does not have the top end speed, but more than makes up for it with his quick feet, and very fluid movements. I've been impressed by his ability to tackle too, which is not a skill you see a lot of in young college cornerbacks, let along high schoolers.

The ability to blitz, is something that seems to be pretty important to Bob Shoop's defense. On plays where the corner flew in off the edge, opposing quarterbacks were often flustered, and it led to a big defensive play. The unpredictability of the corner blitz is the biggest advantage of it, which is why being able to fool a defense and bring the guy they're expecting to lock down one half of the field at the quarterback is such a powerful weapon. John Reid will be a lockdown cornerback sooner, rather than later. His ability to not only cover his many with a blanket, but occasionally break out a quick strike blitz is a rare and coveted skill.

Immediate Outlook

It is because of that strong technique that I expect to lead to John playing as a freshman in 2015. With Jordan Lucas moving to safety, there figures to be plenty of opportunity at cornerback. Rising sophomores Christian Campbell and Grant Haley got experience in their freshman years, but Reid figures to compete with rising seniors Daquan Davis and Trevor Williams, redshirt freshman Amani Oruwariye, and fellow incoming freshman Garrett Taylor for playing time.

Even if he doesn't win a starting job outright, there is certainly a chance that Reid works his way into that role as the season rolls on, similar to the way Haley and Campbell did last year. At the very least, Reid should see serious time as a nickel cornerback. The Big Ten boasts a fair number of talented slot receivers, and John's quickness and already advanced technique should be able to help stymie them a bit.

Everything Else

• John Reid Commits to Penn State
• John Reid's Hudl Page
• John Reid's MaxPrep Page
• John Reid's 247 Profile

Welcome to Penn State, John!