Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, October 15, 1993 TAG: 9310150049
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ANDREA KUHN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LEXINGTON LENGTH: Medium
The Cincinnati native was basking in the splendor of a freshman football season in which he played in all 11 games, started four and made 43 tackles for the Keydets.
But an auto accident midway through the summer abruptly grounded Reardon. The free safety, however, made sure his time spent on the sideline wasn't wasted. He studied - players and schemes - and his homework has paid off.
As a junior this year, Reardon leads the Keydets in tackles with 64 - 33 solo and 31 assisted - in five games.
"It may not look like I gained much from last season in stats," said Reardon, who had 14 tackles after missing the first two games. "But I learned a lot from being able to step back and just watch how things happen. I was able to watch some of the guys on the team and the different techniques they use in certain situations.
"I could think things through and put myself in different situations: `He did it this way. What would I have done?' Maybe his way was better, so you learn different techniques. I probably watched [corner] Rob Gay and [strong safety] Dewayne Arkadie the most."
Reardon said he reported for preseason practice in August 1992 out of shape and still recovering from the accident, which required 150 stitches in his forehead. He contemplated scrapping the season.
"It came across to me, `Maybe I should sit out,' " said Reardon, who played mostly on special teams. "I got down more because I couldn't get as much playing time as before . . . I think the coaches kind of didn't want to play me because of the shock I had suffered just a few months before."
That shock occured at about 3:30 p.m. on July 9, 1992.
Reardon had spent the summer working at the Greater Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky International Airport. He would wake at 4 a.m., head to the airport and spend the day loading and unloading such cargo as mail, money, fish and dead bodies in 90-degree heat.
"Underneath those planes it's more like 110 [degrees]. It's just intensified," Reardon said. "The heat just drains the energy from you."
While driving home on a Cincinnati highway, Reardon fell asleep at the wheel of his Dodge Colt and ran into the back of a tractor-trailer.
"I woke up right before I hit the truck, but it was too late," Reardon said. "I remember trying get to the brake and trying to turn the wheel. I must have turned the wheel a little bit because the truck slowed down and my car veered off . . . He gradually slowed down, which helped, because if he had slammed on his brakes it would have been that much greater of an impact.
"If I hadn't been wearing my seatbelt, I probably wouldn't be around."
Reardon's forehead was sliced open, just barely missing the corner of his left eye. He had surgery to close the cut and later had cosmetic surgery to repair part of his left cheekbone, which had been crushed.
"The plastic surgeon pulled [the cheekbone] up, re-formed it and put three plates in my face, which are still there," he said, pointing to his left temple.
After the operations, Reardon temporarily lost the vision in his left eye, then had double vision for about a month. His eyesight eventually returned to normal and he said he felt fortunate not to have sustained more serious injuries.
When August rolled around, Reardon was unable to participate in preseason practice and was "completely out of shape."
"It happened July 9, which means that's when my workouts stopped," he said. "I wasn't able to run or lift [weights]. I wasn't able to do any of the things that are required of you to get ready for a season. It just put me progressively behind."
Reardon has safer plans for this summer - staying in Lexington to take classes toward his degree in civil engineering. He said he's not interested in an occupation that involves trips to the airport.
Said Reardon: "That was my first year out there and my last year out there."
by CNB