AUSTIN, Texas — Charlie Reed comes from a pretty athletic family, starting with his father, who played college soccer.
“It really tracks back to my dad. He was a goalie, so that’s where I get my goalie genes,” Reed says.
Like his father, Reed has taken to stopping shots on a soccer field. Early on, it became pretty clear that he was good and others noticed. When the Austin FC began in Austin a few years back, they started the Austin FC Academy and Reed was picked to train with the group.
“Obviously it’s a very competitive environment. We were training about 4-5 times a week,” says Reed. “It definitely helped me get to the point where I am today.”
Since Reed was playing with the Austin FC Academy, it meant that he wasn’t playing with the high school team at Vandegrift, where he went. The Vipers coach though knew who Reed was and joked that one day he’d play with the high school team.
“My hope is that your senior year you’re committed to college and you’ll play for us your senior year,” says Jonathan Winship, soccer coach at Vandegrift.”
“He mentioned it to me a while ago, my sophomore year,” Reed says. “He was like I need you to come out and be a part of this. It took a few years but I’m glad I’m here now.’
This past summer, Reed made the decision that he wanted to play his senior season with his high school team.
“I just kind of realized I wanted a change,” says Reed. “(Coach) Winship and I were talking for a really long time and he just told me we have a great opportunity for you here. It was a good reason for me to come in.”
“He was like, hey Winship, I think your dream is going to come true,” says Coach Winship. “I’m going to be available for the fall, so kind of a cool connection for when I first got here to where Charlie is today.”
Reed has fit right in with the Vandegrift team. He was named a team captain and has helped them start 3-0 in district play.
“I think the culture is what makes high school a lot of fun,” says Reed. “I also think high school soccer talent wise is really good and I think that’s going to help me prepare for when I go to Clemson.”
Clemson is where Reed will play his college soccer. He signed with them back in November. At Clemson he’ll be reunited with his older brother, Ian, who was a big time high school football recruit last year and now plays for the Tigers.
“It really started when I went on the trip with Ian to Clemson for his official visit, I think he knew he wanted to be there and I knew I wanted to be there,” says Reed. “Obviously having a brother at campus is huge for me, it’s gonna be fun.”
Who knows, maybe one day Charlie and Ian will be on the same team. This past year, Charlie also played football for the first time in high school as a kicker for Vandegrift. He even made a 48-yard field goal in a playoff game. But Charlie says his ultimate goal is to play professional soccer one day.