Rock Springs High School senior Justis Reese signed his national letter of intent to continue his football career at Dickinson State University next fall. Signing ceremony participants included, from from left, Nathan Reese, Justis Reese and Jennifer Reese; and back, head football coach Mark Lenhardt, Sidney Reese, Payton Reese and head basketball coach Jeremy Main.
ROCK SPRINGS – Hawks are up! Rock Springs High School senior Justis Reese signed his national letter of intent on Tuesday to catch touchdown passes for the Dickinson State University Blue Hawks next season.
Throughout high school, Reese figured he would be playing basketball in college. But after a successful senior season playing wide receiver for the Rock Springs Tigers, he decided football was the best direction for him to go.
“(Dickinson State) made me feel like I was at home. They made me feel comfortable staying there,” Reese said.
“It was kind of crazy because I was expecting to sign somewhere to play basketball all through high school. I ended up having a good year so I thought football would be a good spot for me.
“I think because I’ve been playing basketball since third grade, my body just kind of got tired of it. I started thinking that football would be better for me.”
Before the football season began this past summer, Reese wasn’t thinking about playing after suffering two meniscus injuries his junior year.
“Last football season, I was quarterback and I tore my meniscus there. I ended up having surgery after the season. Then in basketball, I tore it again and had another surgery so I didn’t know if I was going to play,” he said.
He credits Rock Springs head football coach Mark Lenhardt, who talked him into returning to play his senior season and changed his position.
“Lenhardt really pushed me a lot to play receiver because I wasn’t going to go out this year because of my meniscus injury. He really pushed me to come play and he made me feel comfortable playing,” Reese said.
He said the worst part of his meniscus injuries was not being able to be active during the two to three weeks of recovery.
“It wasn’t that long, but it kind of sucked not being able to do anything during that time because I’m always active,” Reese said.
“But my teammates, my coaches and my family helped bring me up to come back even stronger.”
He’s thankful for his family and teammates for helping him shape the person he is today and being there for him when he signed on to play football at the next level.
“Having my teammates here when I signed really means a lot to me because I’ve been playing with them for a long. They’ve been with me since like the third grade,” Reese said.
“And my family has always told me to fight through everything and not be selfish by always having that team mentality.”
Reese believes he can bring a lot to the table for the Blue Hawks next season, whether he’s playing wide receiver or cornerback. But he thinks his attitude will be valuable at the next level.
“My positivity, for sure,” he said. “I love making new friends and I really like their culture down there.”
During his senior season, Reese tied the school record with three interceptions in a game against Cheyenne Central.
He was also named to all-state first team and all-conference first team, including earning third team homors on the Casper Star-Tribune’s Super 25 team.
Reese caught 35 passes for 520 yards, including six touchdowns. He even rushed for one and passed for one during his senior year.
On defense, he recorded 25 tackles, including one tackle for a Loss. He had four interceptions and seven pass breakups.
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