Austin-based high school senior Grant Reed has verbally committed to the Missouri Tigers, thanks to a clutch last-minute phone call from head coach Greg Rhodenbaugh.
“Mizzou was one of the last colleges to contact me by cell,” Reed said. “I was getting ready to plan my other trips when (head coach Greg) Rhodenbaugh called me unexpectedly one night. I took the call and before I knew it I was excited to meet him in person and to take my first official visit to the University of Missouri.
“When I took my visit I was lucky enough to have two other Austin swimmers on my trip who I already knew. The campus was absolutely beautiful and the team was very welcoming and they all acted as one big family. Their pool is amazing and it is under the same roof as many of their facilities so everything is very close and accessible. After the trip I came home and I knew this was the team I wanted to be a part of and the school I wanted to learn from.”
Reed was the 2016 Texas 6A (big school) runner-up in the 200 yard freestyle, swimming a lifetime best of 1:37.95. He also placed 6th in the 100 free in 45.45 representing Austin High School.
Those times indicate Reed’s best discpiline – short-to-mid-distance freestyles. His best times in yards/LCM:
- 50 free – 21.05/23.92
- 100 free – 45.44/52.17
- 200 free – 1:37.95/1:52.11
- 500 free – 4:25.76/3:59.14
- 200 IM – 1:52.50/2:11.18
All of the times listed above came either during, or shortly after, a successful junior season – a season that saw him make a big transitional move with a 3rd-place finish at the Austin Futures meet in the 200 free, and three top-3 finishes at the College Station Sectionals meet.
A clear recruiting focus is developing for the Tigers – finding swimmers to help replace the graduation at the end of this season of All-American Michael Chadwick. That means freestyles – and Reed is the second 45-second 100 freestyler in the class thus far, joining Virginia’s Alex Moore. Also in the class is another Austinite – Ryan Geheb, who moved from Michigan to Austin after his sophomore year of high school to train at Nitro Swimming.
