Reed once again hoping to make the most of a comeback season

Aug 4, 2023
BOISE — What was supposed to be Markel Reed’s comeback season in 2022 didn’t even get out of the first quarter.
In the Boise State football team’s season opener at Oregon State last fall — Reed’s first game back after tearing his ACL five games into the 2021 season — the cornerback left the field early via a cart after once again suffering a knee injury.
“I knew right away when it happened, I knew it was going to be bad,” Reed said. “When I got to the sidelines, I had a lot of emotions going through my head. When I went straight to the tent and they brought me ice, I already knew.”
After another offseason full of rehab, Reed will attempt his second comeback in as many seasons. He’s expected to once again compete for a starting cornerback position along with Kaonohi Kaniho, who came in when Reed went down, Jaylen Clark and A’Marion McCoy, a transfer from Laney Community College who has impressed since stepping foot on campus.
“It’s been a long two years,” Reed said. “Getting hurt in back-to-back years, that’s very unfortunate. But for me, it was a wakeup call and being able to come back off of that is truly a blessing, for sure.”
Reed admits that in the immediate aftermath of his injury in Corvallis, Oregon, there were plenty of emotions going through his head regarding his future in the game and at Boise State. But once he got through those, he knew he wasn’t done just yet.
“It was an easy decision once I got past all those emotions, it was unfinished business,” he said. “I already knew, it was going to take a lot for me to quit. I’m going to keep going every single time.”
No one would have blamed the redshirt senior, now in his fifth season at Boise State, had he stepped away from the game. After all, the last two and a half years have not been the easiest on his body.
After getting a regular spot in Boise State’s defensive backfield rotation as a freshman and sophomore, Reed was slated to move into the starting slot for the 2021 season. But in January of that year, he underwent surgery to repair a torn labrum in his shoulder, forcing him to sit out of spring practices.
He recovered in time for the start of the season and played in Boise State’s first five games, starting four. He made 21 tackles, including a career-high eight against Oklahoma State.
But in the week leading up to a nationally televised game against a top-ten BYU squad, Reed suffered his first knee injury, knocking him out the rest of the 2021 season and spring 2022 practices. Once again, he fought back for a chance to start the 2022 season, only to have it taken away from him barely after it had started.
For the third spring in a row, Reed spent it working his way back from an injury.
“He works so hard and he’s such a great young man,” cornerbacks coach Demario Warren said. “For him to go through what he’s gone through, to have the resolve and dedication to be able to get back again is truly impressive. I’m just a big fan of his, I haven’t really had a chance to work with him on the field since I’ve been here, so it’s exciting to be able to work with him consistently on the field.”
The work he’s put into his recovery has been an inspiration to not only his teammates, but for his position coach, too. In December, Warren had ACL surgery after dealing with lingering knee pain.
As Warren and Reed went through their respective rehabs together, both leaned on each other for moral support. Warren said ultimately, he looked to Reed as motivation to get through some of his toughest days.
“I don’t work as hard as he does, so I respect the heck out of him to be as disciplined and be able to put that in every single day,” Warren said. “I can speak from experience, it’s not easy.”
With this year and the extra COVID-year granted to all players by the NCAA in 2020, Reed has two more years to play, if he chooses to take them. This season, he wants to do whatever he can to help Boise State capture its first Mountain West championship since 2019, his first year on campus.
But he also wants to make sure he’s able to stay on the field and not have a third season in a row taken away by injury.
“Staying healthy, that’s the main goal for me, staying healthy,” Reed said. “That is my No. 1 goal, to finish the season.”