Sunday Chat is a weekly feature appearing in the Blade’s print and digital platforms each Sunday.
Jason Candle and recruiting are as compatible as Airport Highway and orange barrels.
Throughout his nearly 15 years at the University of Toledo, first as a wide receivers coach and the past eight years as head coach, he’s successfully convinced some of the best players in program history, including multiple future NFL guys.
One of those was wide receiver Bernard Reedy, who swapped the warm Florida sun for cold winters in Toledo, where he caught 195 passes for 2,743 yards and 23 touchdowns from 2010 to 2013. In 2012, he had a program-record 237 receiving yards and three TDs in a 52-47 win over Eastern Michigan.
Reedy currently ranks third for single-game touchdown receptions (3), fifth for catches in a single season (88), sixth for career receptions (195), career receiving yards (2,743 yards), and career receiving TDs (23), and eighth for yards in a single season (1,113 yards) and TDs in a single season (9).
In 2012, Reedy caught 88 passes for 1,113 yards and six TDs. He was a first-team All-MAC wide receiver and punt returner and a second-team All-MAC kick returner, nearly pulling off a first-team trifecta.
After going undrafted in 2014, he spent five seasons in the NFL with the Falcons, Buccaneers, Patriots, and Cardinals, with most of his career spent on the practice squad. He caught two passes for 21 yards, making his mark on special teams with 320 return yards.
The 31-year-old lives in Atlanta doing landscaping, home inspections, and home appraisals.
The Blade recently caught up with Reedy to reminisce about his career.
The Blade: How did you end up at Toledo?
Reedy: Coach Candle and coach [Matt] Campbell are really the reasons why because they were consistent. I had pretty much all the big schools that I wanted. All the big schools that were recruiting me stopped coming for whatever reason. The main reason I went to Toledo was because coach Candle was coming down to my neighborhood every week. Coach Candle even showed up at my school after the airline lost his luggage.
The Blade: In 2012, you had seven catches for 118 yards and two touchdowns in a win against Wyoming. Do you have any recollection of that game? [Toledo plays Wyoming in the Arizona Bowl.]
Reedy: Yeah, because I couldn’t breathe out there. I hadn’t ever been to that side of the country and it was hard to breathe because of the elevation. I remember going out there before the game trying to catch punts and it felt like someone was holding your nose closed. It definitely was a disadvantage if you weren’t in shape or hydrated. Hydration was the biggest thing when we played in Wyoming. You had to stay hydrated.
The Blade: How well did coach Candle and the offensive staff prepare you for pro football?
Reedy: Not only was he preparing me for the NFL but life too and everything that comes after the NFL. That’s my dude. Coach Candle and I have a really tight relationship. He knows a lot about my family and a lot of stuff people don’t know. He was close to my dad, who recently passed away. We still talk about once a week.
The Blade: How were you able to stick around in the NFL?
Reedy: You have to set yourself apart. Being undrafted and coming from a smaller school, your work ethic’s gotta be No. 1. You gotta find your mark on special teams. Somehow, someway you have to find your niche on special teams. That’s going to keep you around. In the NFL, you have household names. Typically, the NFL runs off of contracts. Whoever has the bigger contract, that’s who’s going to get the playing time, so you have to outwork everybody and find your niche on special teams. Coach Candle knows how to find those dogs, the people that have that nasty grittiness to them. I know the game has changed with all of the physicality rules, but if you outwork everyone, you’re gonna be fine. That’s what made me stick for so long.
The Blade: Did you embrace special teams and enjoy that part of the game?
Reedy: Absolutely. That was my ticket. I did it in high school and college, so it was second-hand to me.
The Blade: If you had to pick one highlight or one moment that sticks out, what is the lasting memory from the NFL?
Reedy: I ain’t gonna lie, I think my favorite thing was when I got picked up by the Patriots and we went to the Super Bowl. That [stuff] is unreal. Not only just playing with Tom [Brady], those were the hardest practices I ever had in my life. It’s real militant. It’s a do-your-job type of team. That’s why I liked it so much. Do your job, and everything else will be fine.
First Published December 10, 2023, 3:30 p.m.
